Between Worlds
by Lady-Lyonnesse
Summary: Hermione Granger, and a powerful, pregnant and ANNOYED Piper Halliwell in King Arthur times? Good Luck Knights!
1. That Sinking feeling

**I already posted this on harrypotterfanfiction but I thought I'd post it here as well!!! Enjoy - and pleze review! Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

**Chapter 1:That sinking feeling**

The first thing Hermione felt was a wet sensation. She was in the lake. 'How did I end up in the school lake?' she thought then, noticed Viktor Krum beside her, punching his arm in the air while the other Durmstrangs yelled and cheered their appreciation. Hermione felt her school robes pulling her down and clutched at Viktor, who seemed to have forgotten she was there. They both swam to the wooden stadium and Viktor heaved himself up to the arms of his supporters, still yelling wildly. Hermione put her foot on the first rung when she noticed something. The water was too still, too silent. Hermione hesitated. She realised how cold the water had got, where it had been mild a moment before. And that strange smell... Then people saw it, a miniture tidal wave. Girls began shrieking in fear, there were gasps from the adults and yells from the boys. Pandemonium broke out everyone running about like headless chickens. The monster was travelling full speed towards the weak and feeble stadium, standing alone in the middle of the waters. It was about two feet away when it seemed to dive underneath it. The pancking seemed to die down but really what everyone was doing was listening. Hermione dared not move, then... CRASH. Hermione felt her hands being torn from the pathetic ladder as the wave came up the other side of the stadium and crashed down on her. Bubbles. All Hermione saw were bubbles as she turned and writhed in the water. I have to get back up to the surface! she thought and kicked as much as she could with her legs. The trouble was, she had no idea which way was up or down. The bubbles were slowly going away or popping - whatever bubbles did and Hermione could see the light as it danced on the water's surface, beckoning to her. Hermione could feel her strength ebbing away. She only had one chance. Using all she had, she thrust upwards and - broke the surface, gasping air, almost choking. Air! Wonderful, cold, air! It was Christmas and Birthday presents all rolled into one. But Hermione's relief at being able to breathe again was quickly squashed as she saw where she was. And where she was she didn't know - but she certainly wasn't in Hogwarts Lake!

Piper Halliwell screamed as the iron grating she was attatched to, slid into the waters, dragging her with it. She scrabbled desperately but it was no use and barely had time to take a deep breath before she was dragged under. The water was surprisingly bright and clear, though Piper took little notice of that. She tried to pull her ankle free but no go - her desperation increased as she found she couldn't even stroke the water's surface. No! she thought furiously. I am not going to die! For the sake of my baby - I am NOT going to die! Suddenly she blinded by a bright light filling the water. Can the others see this? she wondered, but as the bright light increased she could see it was radiating off a figure. Not just any figure. 

"Mom." Piper stared. This was her mom, with her in the water, comforting her, talking to her. The wonder of it made Piper want to cry and laugh at the same time - which was virtually impossible under water so she just stared.

"Sweetie, before you go back, you've got a job to do. A young witch has been targeted into a time loop. She needs someone - some help. You need to make sure she's safe. Now take my hand. Don't be afraid!" Piper reached out and caught Patty's hand. She felt her ankle slip free from the chain, felt herself being gently pulled up. Piper gasped as she broke the surface. Wow! She hadn't realised how oxygen starved she was, she took a few deep gasps of air then noticed a girl come up next to her, equally out of breath.

"Hey!" Piper swam over to her. "Are you alright?" The girl looked bewildered but nodded, obviously to waterlogged to speak. "Come on." Half supporting, half reassuring, Piper swam with the girl towards the bank. They both heaved themselves up, the girl down on her hands and knees, coughing and spluttering. Piper however stumbled to her feet. She had noticed a deep gash in her stomach which was pouring blood. "My baby!" she whispered, despair filling her voice. The girl must've heard because she turned her head - eyes widening as she saw the wound heal itself. Piper felt her newly healed stomach and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Who are you?" asked the girl.

"I'm Piper." Piper said. "Who are you?"

"I'm Hermione." the girl replied. "How did you do that?"

"Erm, I'm not sure. But I think my baby just did it." Now Hermione looked very unnerved.

"Wait, your baby...?" Hermione shook her head. "Where are we?" she motioned to ask.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Piper shrugged. "I might be twenty-nine and pregnant and no stranger to wierd phenomenon but this has got me stumped!"

"Wait, so you don't come from here?" Hermione asked, gesturing vaguely as to having no idea where here was.

""Do I look like it?" Hermione took in the tank top and trousers and had to admit... "What about you?"

"No. The last thing I remember is in Hogwarts lake..." Hermione broke off and bit her lip. She had that look of someone who had said too much. Now, Piper hadn't heard of Hogwarts before but she knew well enough, how awkward it was to tell people you were a witch.

"What year are you from?" she asked, trying to lighten the atmosphere.

"2001." Hermione said quietly, her head bowed.

"Well we have one thing in common then." Piper smiled. Hermione raised her head and smiled nervously too. "Hermione, I'm going to come clean here. I'm a witch." Hermione's mouth dropped open. This was the last thing she had expected to hear. "Yeah, and my husband is a Whitelighter and this little lump," she patted her stomach. "Is our baby." Hermione nodded.

"But where's your wand?" she asked.

"Wand?" Piper was confused. 

"Yeah, all witches have one." Hermione hesitated. "You do have a wand don't you?"

"You do have powers don't you?" The two stared at each other. Hermione pulled out a wand. She waved it.

"_Wingardium_ _Leviosa_" A fallen branch rose a few feet in the air. Hermione flicked her wand and it fell to the ground.

"Impressive." Piper nodded. She looked up and saw a tree. Focussing for a moment on a branch, Piper made it explode with one hand and froze it with the other. Hermione stared at her.

"Wow!" she said after a while.

'_Yeah_!' thought Piper. '_BIG wow_!'


	2. Something Fishy

**Disclaimer: See beginning!**

**Chapter 2: Something fishy**

"Remind me again, how's this going to work?" Hermione asked, wading into the shallow part of the water and shivering as it lapped at her legs.

"Well, basically," Piper crouched down awkwardly on the bank. "I freeze the water so you can see and catch the fish more easily. Then you pick the two fattest and using your wand, lift the fish up and out, onto the bank."

"But can't we do it, in a way that doesn't involve me getting wet?"

"Not if you want supper." Piper shook her head. "Right, ready? And, 3...2...1..." Hermione nearly overbalanced in shock. Her legs felt like they were cemented into the water, however when she touch it, it felt wet and liquid enough. When Piper had 'froze' the water, she hadn't developed-a-thick-crust-of-ice-good-for-ice-skating-froze it. She had stopped-it-in-it's-tracks-froze it. "Hey, you do realise there's a time limit on this thing?" Piper called, bringing Hermione back out of her day dream. Hermione whipped out her wand. 

"Wingardium Leviosa!" Hermione repeated, and being Hermione, she managed to lift two fish out at the same time and smack them against a tree. Piper ran to the fish, and the water rushed back to life, almost knocking Hermione over. She hurried to the bank and climbed up. Piper turned round, beaming and holding two unmoving fish, one in each hand.

"Well, we've got supper!" she said, smiling. "Now all we need is..." Hermione waved her wand again and blue flames shot out of it, making a neat little camping fire on the grass. Then she moved the fallen log over to make a little bench and finally pointed her wand at her legs, which dried instantly. "Impressive." Piper said. Hermione just nodded, faintly embarrassed that she was being praised by such a powerful witch.

A little while Hermione leant back, thoroughly content. The fish was absolutely delicious, even if the only thing accompanying it was wild mushrooms.

"Thanks Piper, I needed that!" she said. Piper blushed and took Hermione's make-shift plate.

"I suppose we'll have to wash these." she commented, doubtfully, eyeing the dirty pieces of wood. "I'll wash them in the stream - unless you." Piper, half paused, hopefully. Hermione pointed her wand at the plates, lazily.

"Scourgify" the dirt on the plate vanished. Piper examined them with raised eyebrows.

"Nice." Hermione smiled again, while Piper stacked the wooden plates at the trunk of the tree.

"Piper, can I ask you something?" she suddenly asked.

"Shoot." Piper nodded, joining Hermione on the log by the fire.

"Why are you here? I don't mean to sound rude or anything," she added, hastily. "It's just that, by the looks of it you have family yourself to care for," Hermione indicated Piper's slight bump. "And you're here looking after me."

"Good question." Piper admitted after a slight pause. "Well, I guess the real reason is that, you needed help. I mean evidently you're a very special witch - maybe you play an important part in the future. Otherwise you wouldn't have a Charmed One with you or this never be happening to you."

"But that's bad." Hermione put in. Piper looked confused.

"You lost me."

"Like you said, I must have an important part to play in the future. Otherwise you wouldn't be here excetera, excetera. But with a powerful witch - comes the powerful... demon." Piper noted the fear in Hermione's voice. "We've never learnt how to vanquish demons at Hogwarts - or to make up spells - wand work won't be enough..." Hermione's trail of ramblings ran out and she just stared helplessly at Piper.

"You're really scared about this aren't you?" Piper asked, softly. Hermione nodded.

"I got scared reading about them in the school's library. I thought, I hoped that they were just what my friends told me. Faery tales. I mean to think that something is actually capable of doing something that horrific... and then to find out that they're real and coming after you. It's just, so, mindblowing!" Piper put an arm round the fifteen year old.

"If it helps, my baby has this thing about not letting Mommy die. I think we're both safe." Hermione gave a very weak smile, remembering earlier with the whole healing thing. "But you're right. Just because I'm indestructable doesn't mean some pretty big demons won't be after our heads. However, I do think that we won't be able to figure a way back if we don't get some sleep." Hermione nodded and tried to get comfy on some moss. "But Hermione," Hermione turned over to face Piper's smiling face, illuminated by the flames. "You'd better sleep with your wand just in case."

'Piper. Piper' Piper didn't know where she was. She was lying on a white marble floor, in what seemed like a white temple. Clouds past floated outside, on a cool breeze, the marble floor was warm and all Piper wanted was to lie there for eternity...But, 'Piper, Piper'...

"Piper! Piper!" Piper moaned and woke up to see Hermione bending over her, shaking her with a worried look in her brown eyes. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, just abit odd... why? What's happened?" Piper bolted upright - a movement that made her feel nauseous. 'Damn! What a time for morning sickness to kick in.'

"You were tossing and then you sort of became peaceful - I thought you'd died!" Hermione rocked back on her legs and bit her lip. "Sorry, but you've no idea how creepy that was!" Piper shook her head, trying to clear it, only increasing the nausiousness.

"I'm fine, I'm fine - whoa!" Piper clasped a hand over her mouth. "I don't think the baby liked Mommy's fish." Hermione looked scared again, it made Piper want to laugh but restrained from doing so, unpleasantly aware of the fact that something much more unwelcome might come along too. "Oh God! Oh my God!" Hermione rushed to Piper's side and helped the pregnant woman to her feet, practically carrying her, for Piper's unstable, shaking, legs were in no position to support Piper's body plus some. They barely made it too the stream in time. Piper crouched on her arms and legs, her body racked with well... and Hermione watching, warily. Eventually Piper's explosions turned to coughs, she reached down into the stream and cupped a hand.

"No!" Hermione stopped her. "Think of the germs!" She pulled out her wand again. Running along the ground was a small rodent. Hermione seized it, then attempted to position herself so her wand was in one hand and pointing at the struggling animal in her hand. "Pertrificus Totalus!" The mouse froze. Hermione smiled inwardly, but didn't have time to admire her handiwork. She tapped it three times with her wand. "Vera Verto" In a flash, she was holding a silver water goblet. She squinted at it in the dark, shrugged. "Scourgify!" 

"Hermione!" Piper called, weakly.

"Agumenti!" Hermione whispered, pointing her wand at the goblet one final time, before hurrying back to Piper, nearly spilling the filling goblet in her haste. "I'm here. Drink this!" She shoved the goblet under Piper's nose, Piper inhaling half of it up the nostrils before understanding what it was. She took a deep drink then gave a shudder, that took all the strength from her body.

"Thanks!" she said, hoarsly. "Now, if you help me back over to the fire..." Hermione hauled her up again and led her back to the minature camp. Piper curled up on the soft moss near the warmth and the heat and didn't stir, still, Hermione took the precaution of turning her back before performing all the counter charms.

"Ouch!" Hermione dropped the squirming mite and sucked her finger. The little mouse scurried away into the dark, being turned into a water goblet, cleaned and then drunk out of, obviously too much for it.

A thud woke Piper the second time. She opened her eyes blearily, it was light, the fire had gone out which meant it was day. Piper turned over to see where Hermione was and shot back in surprise. An arrow had embedded itself in the ground, a few minutes away from her face. 

"Hermione, wake up!" Piper pulled the half-asleep girl to her feet.

"Wass wrong?" she asked, bewilderdly, her voice slurred from sleep. Piper was just about to reply when a faint whistling noise was heard above them. Fearing the worst, Piper glanced upwards.

"Move!" Piper pulled Hermione, painfully by the arm out of the way as another arrow sailed through the air and hit the spot where Hermione had been two seconds previous. Hermione stared wide eyed, thoughts of sleep abandoned, the pain in her arm that Piper was still clutching, forgotten (or maybe it had just gone numb).

"Was that a demon attack?" she asked cautiously. Piper released Hermione (who couldn't help but sigh as all feeling flooded back into her arm) and bent down. She ripped an arrow out of the ground and examined it.

"No. It's not dark lighter. No poison, and they use arrows a bit more modern." She judged, holding up, what looked like a stone age arrow. Hermione reached out to touch it with tentative fingers but stopped.

"Can you hear that?" she asked. The rhythmetic thump of horse hooves filled the country air, birds stopped singing and stones began rattling on the ground. Piper let the arrow fall from her hand and slowly edged in front of Hermione, shoulders tensed, hands at the ready. Hermione fingered her wand in her pocket, mentally going through all the defensive spells she'd ever learnt about. Just over the hill, seven figures, riding on horseback came galloping over to them,

"Piper," Hermione whispered. "When you said about the arrow being modern - what time period are we comparing it to here?" The seven figures reigned in their horses and stared at the two time-travellers.

"Arthur look at this, two women, alone by the looks of it." one stated, eyeing Piper and Hermione. 

"Well you can tell he's the brains of the family." Piper muttered for Hermione's ears only.

"Wenches, what is your purpose here?" another one asked.

"What is yours?" Piper returned at once.

"The woman's got feist." one commented.

"Ladies, I am Arthur Castus and these are the Sarmation Knights." said a man in a shiny breastplate, indicating to the other six around him. "Lancelot, Gawain, Bors, Tristan, Dagonet and Galahad." Each man inclined his head to the stunned Hermione and the raised eye-browed Piper. Piper bit back a sarcastic remark of 'And who are you when you're at home?'' and instead opted for,

"Did you fire those arrows?" the Knights looked at each other. "You could've killed us!"

"I think the wench is angry." Lancelot muttered to Bors.

"I repeat you could've killed us!"

"Piper, no they couldn't." Hermione piped up, her voice higher than usual.

"Hows that then?" Piper demanded, rounding on Hermione.

"Look at the arrows. They're facing the wrong way to be fired by them." 

"But then," Piper turned back to the Knights, confused. "If you didn't fire them, who did?"


	3. Normal People

**Disclaimer: I own nothing **

**Chapter 3: Normal People in Extraordinary circumstances**

Another arrow flew past Piper's head.

"Woads!" Tristan cautioned, notching an arrow onto a bow as he spoke.

"You ladies, better get to safety." Hermione and Piper looked around.

"W..where actually _is _safety?" Hermione ventured to ask, trembling slightly. Arthur looked around too, taking in the wide stretch of landscape, the moors and the open fields.

"Good point, just stay down." Piper grabbed Hermione by the arm again and led her out of earshot.

"So do we use magic?" Hermione asked.

"No." Piper decided. "Not unless it's life threatening."

"So what do we do?" Piper looked around at the Knights, unsheathing swords, notching arrows, handling axes. This was going to be a blood bath and she and Hermione stood right in the middle of it.

"Back away to the tree." Piper breathed. Hermione looked confused but did as she was told, staring at Piper, who appeared to be muttering words under her breath. When they reached the trunk, they both crouched down and kept silent. Both were on tenterhooks. Hermione was waiting for the battle to begin and Piper was waiting to see if her spell worked. Tense silence settled on everyone now, the knights were slowly turning. They had mounted their horses and various weapons were being brandished, ready for the attack.

"Argh!" Dagonet cried out as an arrow narrowly missed his burly shoulder. More cries echoed and Woads could be seen, pouring out of the forest the other side of the stream, rushing towards them, undettered by the running water.

"Well, at least they're not vampires." Piper consoled. Hermione didn't find it comforting. As the first Woad was knocked down, she hid her head in Piper's shoulder. Piper, however, just watched. She had vanquished demons before so was no stranger to death - or destruction in her case. But this was - _brutal_. The Woads didn't burst into flames like demons did. Blood spurted out of their horrific wounds and carried on bleeding till they were mangled bodies on the floor. Eventually the Woads admitted defeat and fled, not caring for the axes and arrows that chased them back to the sanctuary of the forest. Piper let out a huge sigh of relief, then pulled Hermione up to her shaking feet. The knights, all looking worse for wear, ignored them. Lancelot was busy trying to disentangle an arrow from a bloody wound in his arm. "Do you need help?" Piper asked, genuinley concerned. He jumped.

"Where were you?" he demanded. Piper raised her eyebrows.

"Excuse me?" asked Hermione, puzzelled. "We were there, by the tree the whole time!"

"By _that _tree?" Arthur asked. Hermione nodded. "But, we couldn't see you. And the Woads didn't seem to able to either!" Hermione nodded and turned an accusing glance at Piper. Piper gave her a meaning look then turned her attention back to Lancelot's arm. He yelped in pain.

"Ah, quit your whining!" Piper told him. "And keep _still_! No wonder I can't get it out." Lancelot looked as if he was going to reply but decided against it. Hermione shook her head and turned back to Arthur, who was trying hard not to laugh.

"Sorry, Piper's a bit moody at the moment." she apologised.

"Hey, I'm pregnant and far from my nice warm bed - I think I'm _entitled _to be the least bit moody!" she gave a vicious tug on the arrow as she said it and it came free with tremendous force and another yell from Lancelot.

"You're pregnant?" asked Arthur. Piper heaved an over-exaggerated sigh and flatted the clothes around her stomach so the bump looked bigger. All the Knights nodded, but looked more startled than anything. Hermione let out a giggle at their faces - then fell to the ground, gasping for breath.

"Hermione!" Piper was on her knees by her in an instant. Hermione was rather stunned. She tried to move her left arm - fine. Then she tried her right and pain shot down it like an electric shot. Why did her shoulder feel so numb? Then Hermione saw it. A slim black arrow, protruded from her shoulder blade. It smealt foul and was making her wound go a nasty green. It wasn't a Woad arrow. Piper stared at it. "Darklighter." she muttered. The Knights were all gathered around them too. Piper snatched Tristan's thick, leather glove from him and put it on. She then took a firm hold of the arrow and pulled. Hermione felt prespiration break out on her brow as she desperatley tried not to scream. But she couldn't help a little gasp escape her as the arrow came free from her body. Piper held it up and examined it. "Don't touch it!" she warned as Arthur leant forward to take it. "It's poisoned." Arthur nodded and pulled on his gloves before Piper allowed him to hold it.

"Piper, if it was poisoned then..." Hermione trailed off.

"No. It's only deadly to Whitelighters. I've never seen a witch shot before so I have no idea what is going to happen."

"Then why did it shoot me?" Hermione asked, her body beginning to shake. Piper rocked back on her heels.

"It was testing you." she answered quietly. "The demons want to know what they're dealing with, so they're trying to suss out what you are."

"And the best way to kill me." Hermione snorted. "Makes it sound like they want to file me in a cabinet." Piper laughed too, then her eyes trailed back to the woods.

"We can't stay here; if we do, we'll be dead by nightfall." she said in a low voice.

"Pardon me," Arthur interjected. Piper whirled round to face him. "You and your..."

"Niece." Piper interjected quickly.

"You and your niece are welcome to stay at the Wall with us."

"What wall?" asked Hermione, from the floor, her body still shaking violently.

"Hadrian's Wall." Arthur replied, looking astounded that he'd actually needed to explain it.

"_The _Hadrian's wall?" Hermione asked, her eyes shining. Piper could practically see Hermione's brain cells go into overdrive.

"Hermione this is a pitt stop, _not_ a field trip." Hermione gave an inward _hrumph_! Which went unnoticed anyway as her body had just gone into shake over-drive. Dagonet bent over her.

"It's Hermione isn't it?" Hermione nodded. "Okay, I need you to get to the horses. Can you stand?"

"I can't even sit up!"

"Ah, this makes things awkward." And he stooped down and scooped her into his arms. Hermione looked positivley terrified at being picked up and clung to his arm, resulting in something long and thin falling to the ground.

"My wand!" Hermione yelled.

"I have it!" Piper called, tucking the wand up her sleeve.

"Wand?" Arthur muttered to Piper.

"Don't ask." she returned. Arthur raised his eyebrows, in that probing kind of way, but Piper merely shrugged it off.

"And who do you want to travel with?" Piper looked startled at his suggestion.

"Excuse me?"

"Who do you want to ride with?" Piper's ears turned pink. She felt like an awkward school girl on their first day, being asked who she'd want to sit next to.

"Ummmm..."

"Right, Lancelot!" Piper froze, _Not him! Anyone but him!_ She looked at Lancelot's face and felt her insides go numb. She raised her hands - and froze him. Froze all the Knights.

"Piper!" a mortified voice (that incidentally was Hermione) gasped. "What did you do that for?"

"Have you seen the guy?" demanded Piper. "He's a total... SMUG PILLOCK!"

"Piper, it's only for a little while." Hermione soothed her. "And I think it would be best if we got to the Wall _quickly..._" Her body conveniantly gave a violent jerk. Piper sighed.

"Fine." and the scene unfroze. Lancelot dismounted and walked his horse over to Piper.

"And how are you, milady?" he asked, a grin plastering his face.

"Happily married." Piper answered coldly, getting up, onto the saddle. Lancelot mimed putting his hands up in surrender before joining her.

"This is going to be fun." Gawain whispered to Dagonet, Bors and Galahad who all snickered. Hermione bit her lip, worriedly, making it bleed.

"Hey, don't do that!" Galahad said, pulling some sort of cloth out of a pouch and wiping the blood away.

"Thanks," Hermione muttered, a particullary strong twitch running down her spine like an electric jolt.

"So, you know... erm..." Galahad asked, as they set off, nodding at Piper.

"Who? Piper? Oh yeah she's my ..." Hermione broke off unsure. Piper had obviously been listening, as she twisted around in the saddle, trying to get a view past Lancelot, mouthing furiously. "My..._ aunt_?" Hermione carried on, trying to interpret Piper's mouthings. Piper nodded violently. "Yeah, she's my aunt." Hermione pressed on confidently. Galahad raised an eyebrow but didn't comment.

"So where are you and your _aunt_ from?" asked Gawain.

"Erm... I really don't know." Hermione furrowed her forehead. "Hey," she turned to Dagonet. "Do you mind if we catch up with my Aunt for a second?" Dag merely smiled and made the horse trot faster ahead.

**Piper is going to stay faithful to Leo by the way **


	4. The many Talents of Hermione Gran

**Disclaimer: As before **

**Chapter 4: The many extra-ordinares of Hermione Granger**

"Hey, hows it going?" asked Piper, when Hermione and Dagonet caught up with them. Hermione grimaced. Her violent seizures had lessened into shivers, but she was still in a great deal of discomfort.

"Okay, well just hold on, the fort's only about half a mile away." Dag told her. Hermione nodded greatfully.

"So, you're knights, what do you actually do?" Piper asked. Dag and Lancelot shared a grin. "What? All I do is ask a question and your grinning away like Jerry Springer?"

"Who's Jerry Springer?" asked Dag.

"Yeah, actually, who is he?" Hermione demanded.

"Erm, American tv presenter," Piper explained, vaguely. "Okay, but that's not the point," she moved on hurriedly, seeing the surprised looks on Dag and Lancelot's faces. "The point is, you began smiling as soon as I'd finished the question, do you not know?!"

"Oh, we sure know!" Lancelot put in, a grim smile on his lips. "Taken from our home as children to serve Rome in Britain. Fifteen years we've been here. You think we'd be out here, busting our backs if we didn't know the reason?"

"Why can't Rome take care of themselves?" Hermione asked. Dag almost smiled at the anger in her voice.

"Yeah, that's what we think." he told her. "But, hey, what can we do against the Roman Army?"

"Take a stand.. Fight Back! I mean, like, what are you gonna do? Let them walk all over you like... _paving stones_?" Hermione's shakes of indignation mingled with her original ones.

"There is a place for the Roman Empire in the world - just not for Sarmaria, or any of these countries for that matter." Dag replied solemnly.

"Well, that sucks." Hermione pointed out.

The Knights put on a burst of speed as they galloped through the gates of Hadrian's wall. People threw themselves out the way and Piper covered her eyes with her hands. Even when they'd stopped she still had her face covered.

"Erm, Piper..." Lancelot tapped her shoulder. "We have to get down now."

"What?"

"We've stopped!" Lancelot said, louder. Piper peeked, cautiously over her hands.

"Oh." Meanwhile, Gawain and Galahad had dismounted and were helping Hermione get down, then stood there, one either side of her. As soon as Piper was free of the saddle, she hurried over to Hermione too.

"Oh dear, they've bought another one in." A woman muttered, eyeing Piper suspiciously. Piper ignored her.

"Are you alright?" she asked Hermione. Hermione nodded. Arthur, who had also dismounted, came over.

"Ladies. We will find rooms for you - I'm afraid you'll have to have seperate apartments..." Piper nodded, not really taking it in, too busy with Hermione. It was then, that Hermione gave a very small hiccup and multi-coloured light floated out of her mouth. Hermione clapped her hand to her mouth in shock. Piper's eyes widened. "... We will send healers..."

"No!" Piper cut across him quickly. Arthur looked taken aback. "Sorry, but if we could just get to a room quickly. I'm sure she just needs rest." Arthur, still looking puzzled, nodded.

"Jols, will show you the way." A man on the side-lines, obviously Jols, beckoned to them. Gawain and Galahad bent down to help Hermione but Piper stopped them as well.

"No, it's okay, I can take it from here." she insisted. Galahad and Gawain looked doubtfull but stepped back and Piper took hold of Hermione, nearly shaking too as the two time-travellers hobbled off, into the Roman building.

Hermione had begun perspiring by the time she'd reached the little room where Jols had shown them. Piper had left Hermione and slammed the door shut while Hermione crawled onto the bed. Just in time. Hermione opened her mouth and the same multicoloured light, streamed out of it. Piper squinted her eyes against the brightness of it. And then, in the midst of the bright light, a black thing was in the middle, it looked like a liquidized ribbon, the way it twisted and rithed but before long it was consumed by the bright light and was gone.

"Hermione?" Piper asked tentativley.

"Yeah. I'm here." Hermione sat up. "Ooh! What just happened?"

"Well, honey, from what it looked like, it was magical explusion." Piper explained, sitting down beside her.

"Magical - what?"

"Magical Expulsion. When something bad - like Dark lighter poison enters your body, the only way to get rid of it is... Magical Explusion."

"A bit like Magical Phelgm?" asked Hermione.

"Kind of."

"Hmm. So that's why I have a bad taste in my mouth." Piper laughed, even Hermione grinned sheepishly.

"Piper, how are we going to get back?" Hermione asked. Piper stopped laughing. She looked at Hermione and for once, saw the child she really was.

"I don't know." she answered truthfully. "But we will get back. I promise. I'm not having my baby born in a bucket! But until then," Piper lowered her voice. "We have to get our story straight."

"Oh, you mean, that I'm your niece." Hermione nodded. "Well, that's easy enough. You do have two sisters." Piper wrinkled her brow.

"Three, actually and how do you know that?" Hermione shrugged.

"Power of Three kinda says it all." Piper surveyed Hermione under raised eyebrows.

"Right. So, here's the thing. We're travellers on our way to greet our brother at Hadrian's wall. You are the daughter of my late elder sister, Prue okay? And my husband is missing in action so we are poor, defenceless women with kick-ass powers being chased by demons." Hermione stared, admiringly.

"You thought of all that in one go?" she asked.

"No, I was thinking it from the moment we met Arthur and the brain dead Knights of the Round table." Hermione giggled. Suddenly there was a smart rap of the door.

"Come in." Piper called. The door opened and a man with a grubby tunic and a sword strapped to his side stood there. He was holding some folds of material in his arms.

"Arthur has had some clothes sent up. He apologises if they aren't the right size."

"Oh, thankyou." Piper stood up and took the clothes. "Oh, sorry, what's your name?"

"Jols." Jols answered. "And Arthur also requests that you give him the pleasure of dining with him at dinner."

"Hmm. I think we can grant him said pleasure." Piper smiles. Jols nodded and left, shutting the door behind him. As soon as he was gone Piper examined the clothes.

"Boy, when fashions change they're not kidding."

Arthur entered the round table hall.

"Hey, Arthur, when's the food?" Galahad asked.

"It should be here soon." Arthur promised. Galahad groaned.

"If they leave it in much longer, it'll be watery like last week!"

"Yeah - well, maybe Lancelot can sleep with a kitchen girl." Gawain joked. Lancelot shook his head.

"Have you _seen _the Kitchen girls?"

"No, but you have." Everyone laughed, but Arthur cut across them.

"That's something I want to talk to you about. The ladies Piper and Hermione will be joining us for dinner. They are obviously Ladies and so that means no rough language. We don't want to shock..."

"Ah, Hush up Arthur, when you come from San Fransisco, there is very little that will shock you." Everyone stood up as Piper and Hermione entered. Both were changed, Piper in a Roman dress, that came down to her ankles and Hermione was in a peasant's blouse, long skirt and a pinnafore over that.

"Lady Piper, Lady Hermione." Arthur bowed respectfully.

"Arthur... Knights." Piper and Hermione gave a short curtsy.

"Um... please, take a seat." Arthur gestured to the many vacant seats. Piper nodded with raised eyebrows and sat down, Hermione next to her. Awkward silence fell, Piper rubbed her stomach with one hand.

"So." Hermione began, making a stab at conversation. "when's dinner?"

"Sir, dinner's served!" Jols spoke before Arthur could reply.

"Well done Hermione!" Piper congratulated. But as the plates were put before them, the congratulations wore thin. The knights looked distastefully at their plates.

"Well... tuck in." Arthur prompted half-heartedly the prospect didn't looked tempting to anyone.

"Wait, you actually _eat _this stuff?" asked Piper, incrediously.

"Yeah, why not?" asked Lancelot, not putting much effort into defending the muck. Hermione scooped up a load with her spoon and let it drip back into the bowl, exchanging horrified looks with Piper.

"Okay, that's it!" Piper stood up from her seat.

"Piper!" Hermione began.

"Don't you _Piper _me!" Piper stopped her. "Hey, you! Jols. Take me to the kitchens!"

"That was the best sheep stew I've ever had." Galahad said, leaning back in his chair, contentedly.

"Too right!" Gawain agreed. Piper blushed.

"Thanks - maybe could've used a little more spice and a little less of cook Bertha's Blackburry surprise, but hey, if you all liked it." Bors belched loudly. "Not at the table, please." Piper chided.

"Well, Lady Piper, we have to thankyou for the best meal... well, the best meal." Arthur grinned.

"Thanks, but please. It's Piper. _Just _Piper."

"But, Lady Piper - now your wearing proper Roman attire, it's abit obvious that you are of noble birth."

"Wow, I've never been called that before." Piper muttered to Hermione, who nudged her.

"So, Ladies Hermione and Piper, we're all dying to know." Lancelot leaned forward. "Why were you on the banks of the river, alone?"

"Um, well. We were travelling to Hadrian's wall to meet up with my brother." Piper began, unsteadily. "And we got attacked and had to make our own way."

"And family? I assume you have a rich inheritance even if they're not all alive."

"Yes. Hermione is the daughter of my sister. My elder sister, Prue."

"Is Prue with you?" asked Tristan, breaking his normal silence. Piper looked at him, then at Hermione.

"She died. She was killed. Assasinated, actually, I would've died too if my husband hadn't been there. There was only time to save one of us, you see..." Piper trailed off. Hermione patted her arm.

"My uncle, is at present, missing in action with the Roman military. It's only us." she told them, hoping she was lying as well as Piper.

"I'm sorry." Arthur apologised. Piper batted away the apology, tears still trickling from her eyes.

"No, it's not your fault. It's just so hard..." Hermione put a comforting arm around her fake aunt and knew it was about to get alot harder.


	5. We will, we will ROCK YOU

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything except Rosie and anything else that sounded like it came from my head!**

**Chapter 5: We will, we will, ROCK YOU!!**

Piper lay in her bed, watching the flame of her candle flicker, making all the objects in her new room distort strangley, till they were hardly recognisable. A guilty conscience was in the back of her mind, moving like the candle. She shouldn't of broken down like that on Hermione. It wasn't fair - although the kid had done exceptionally well. Declining the offer of joining the Knights in the tavern and requesting that they merely slept. Arthur had then summoned Jols and she and Hermione were both sent to their rooms. She hadn't seen Hermione since, yet a little tingling of hope remained that Hermione would visit her before morning. Piper sat bolt upright as the door creaked open.

"It's only me." Piper relaxed.

"Come in Hermione, only next time please don't scare me like that. You might get blown up!" Hermione moved, cautiously into the room. She was in a yellowish-white night dress, her hair loose around her shoulders, contrasting with her pale face, giving her the appearance of a ghost. She sat down tentativley on the edge of the bed.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Better, thanks." Piper smiled. Hermione nodded and there was an awkward pause. "So, where did you get that?" Piper indicated the night gown. Hermione plucked at it.

"A Lady named Vanora, gave it to me. She seemed quite nice." Hermione shrugged, non-commitally. Piper nodded and the room fell silent.

"Did, your eldest sister really die?" Hermione quavered at last, unsure of the reaction she was going to get. Piper, however remained calm.

"Yes."

"You must've been really close."

"More, than anyone will ever know. She was the best Witch ever and the best eldest sister I could ever have asked for."

"I hope I can live up to her then." Hermione looked nervously at Piper. Piper smiled and chucked Hermione under the chin.

"I know, for a fact that Prue would be proud to have a daughter as intelligent and kind-hearted as you are." Hermione smiled. "And you probably have people looking for you."

"Harry and Ron will be very worried." Hermione agreed. "And I suppose, Mum and Dad." Hermione trailed off in thought.

"Well, you'd best get back to bed then. If we're going to find a way to get back, we need to have all the energy we can get." Piper told her. Hermione raised her eyebrows Piper-style.

"Are you sending me to bed?"

"Hey, gotta get into practice!"

"Rise and shine, miss!" Hermione sat bolt upright as the cloths were taken away from the windows and bright light streamed from the windows. "Arthur says you've missed breakfast already, but he's arranged for you to eat in the kitchens. Once your dressed I'll take you down." Hermione rubbed her eyes and looked around groggily, shivering, as she pulled back her covers and set her feet on the freezing ground. "Come on miss. You'll freeze if you stand around any longer!" The Maid shoved some clothes into her arms.

"I'm sorry, what's your name?" The Maid smiled.

"Ah, Miss, you need not know, but if you must - it's Rosie."

"Thankyou Rosie." Hermione said, politely. Rosie nodded again, before closing the door behind her with a 'click'. Hermione smelt the clothes. If she wasn't mistaken, they smelt distinctly of _Leanor_ washing powder. But then again, she shrugged as she pulled the garments on, she should be greatful for clean clothes at least.

The kitchen was warm and pleasant and smelt of freshly baked bread. Loaves were being baked, dough kneeded and vegetables were being chopped, but what Hermione noticed and was most pleased about was Piper, sitting at a table in the middle, directing a woman on the perfect way to chop carrots.

"Slice at an angle, there you go - not a straight angle, more of a diagonal..."

"Hey, Piper." Piper turned away, and saw Hermione.

"Hermione! Hi! Come and sit and have some breakfast." Hermione, eagerly slid onto the seat. "Hello you can we get some breakfast for the kid please?" Piper asked a cook who gave her a filthy look before banging a plate of bacon and eggs down in front of Hermione, who tucked in at once.

"Sleep well?" asked Piper. Hermione nodded.

"You?" she asked, after her mouth was empty, before shovelling in another heaping load of bacon.

"Hmm, had another bad dream, but aside from that I'm okay."

"What kind of dreams?"

"Just, wierd dreams. Nothing to worry about." Piper dismissed firmly. The thought of stopping eating to press Piper, didn't appeal to Hermione, so she didn't say another word until she'd cleared her plate, even mopping up the juice with some bread. "Finished?" Piper asked. Hermione nodded. "Right then, lets go and see what these Knights in Shining Armour are made of," Hermione got up and followed Piper to the door. "Then again, I don't know what armour could hold those egos..."

"Something I don't get," Hermione said, as they crossed a Courtyard. "How are we meant to tell who are demons and who are people?"

"Well, there is a way. Demons don't bleed."

"Great, so all we have to do is stab everyone we see with a sword." Hermione replied, sarcastically.

"Well, not exactly." Piper hooked her arm through Hermione's. "There are several other characteristics, that kind of give it away."

"Like what?" Hermione asked, as they passed a man dressed in a Centurian's uniform facing a stall selling pots and urns.

"Well, some will have red eyes, others will have a long tail sticking out of their butt and others, you just get that kind of feeling -" Hermione whirled around, her arm twisting free of Piper's. "Hermione? What's wrong?"

"Wasn't there a man just there?" Piper turned too. The street was deserted. No man. But Hermione had been so sure...

"He was right there...! I'm sure I saw him!"

"Yeah, I know you did." Piper said quietly, a frown creasing her brow.

"Maybe we should..." Hermione started, her wand half drawn when Piper stopped her, catching the crook of her arm.

"No. No, let's just find the knights." The two turned abruptly to leave, but in their haste, were caught by someone behind them.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" they both screamed and Piper automatically raised her hands, but caught herself when she realised who it was.

"Galahad!" Hermione almost cried with relief.

"Is something wrong?" the Knight asked confused.

"No! No, of course not! Why would anything be wrong?" Hermione asked almost hysterically. Piper firmly clasped a hand over Hermione's mouth.

"Except for the fact that you nearly frightened us to death!" she accused.

"Sorry, Arthur was wondering what was taking you and sent me to see if you were alright." Galahad replied, a hint of hurt in his voice.

"Oh, well, um... that was a very nice gesture Galahad and we appreciate it." Galahad's eyebrows flew into his hair, obviously freaked out by this civil side of Piper. Hermione wrenched her mouth away, from Piper's grasp. "So, where are you Knights stationed?" Piper asked, wiping her hand on her skirts.

"Umm, over here." Galahad muttered indistinctivly, and walked off, taking long strides so Hermione and Piper had to hurry just to keep in his shadow.

"This close!" Piper hissed to Hermione, indicating with her fingers how close Galahad had come to being blown apart. "This close."

The Knights were in the sparring grounds, as it were. Two were practising archery, two more sword work and the other two were exercising their horses.

"Ladies!" Arthur exclaimed, leaving the fighting ring, in which he had been sparring with Lancelot to greet them. "We thought you'd got lost."

"In a manner of speaking." Piper replied. Arthur nodded and turned to Galahad.

"Knock yourself out." Galahad nodded and ran to the ring where Lancelot was waiting.

"Is there an actual possibility of that happening?" asked Hermione apprehensivley as the fight started.

"Most probably." Arthur smiled. Piper returned the smile and Hermione slipped away, unnoticed as Arthur and Piper began talking. Tristan was taking shots at a target. He got a bullseye with the first arrow and the second arrow went straight through.

"Whoa!" Hermione couldn't help but stare in awe. Tristan turned his cold eyes on her. "I..I.. That w...was really good." Hermione stuttered under his gaze. He regarded her in an awkward silence and Hermione hung her head, as if she should be ashamed. But in the end he didn't say anything, just held out his bow.

"Here." his voice was gruff. Hermione stared at the bow he held out.

"That's Tristan's way of letting you have a go." Dag called, dismounting from his horse and coming over.

"Oh!" Hermione exclaimed, surprised. "I'm not sure I could, I mean..."

"Go on, kid! Let's see you put Tristan here to shame!" Bors yelled in his big voice. Seeing no way out, Hermione took the bow in shaking hands.

"Right, take your stance." Tristan told her. Hermione, blushing like mad, tried to copy what she'd just seen. Tristan carefully examined her, gently adusting her arms, her head until she was satisfactory. "Now look down the arrow, right at the point you want to send it." Hermione looked. "Both eyes open!" Tristan chided sternly. Hermione opened the other eye. Her fingers gripped the strong bow with one hand and gently squeezed the arrow with the arrow. And one... two... three... A loud clang made Hermione jump. Galahad had just fallen out of the ring and smashed through the wooden fence. The arrow soared through the air. Arthur forced Piper down as the arrow clanged off his backplate, hit Gawain's helmet on the post and embedded itself in the ground, five inches away from Galahad's head.

"Nice shot." Piper said, as Galahad pulled the arrow out of the ground. Dag, Bors and Gawain were killing themselves with laughter, Arthur and Lancelot were grinning broadly, even Tristan was smiling.

"I'm sorry," said a shame faced Hermione as she tried handing the bow back to Tristan, but he shook his head.

"Another arrow. One more go - _one_ more." he cut across Hermione as she opened her mouth to protest. Hermione reluctantly took up her stance and looked down the arrow. She narrowed her eyes, one... two - the arrow tore itself from her fingers and soared through the air, it hit the bullseye and carried on straight through, eventually hitting a tree on the outskirts of the forest. Hermione stared in shock. No one was laughing anymore.

"Good." said Tristan, smiling. Hermione smiled back and handed him the bow, before turning back towards Piper.

"That was quite a shot kiddo." she whispered.

"Yeah, never mind the shot, can we go now _please_?" Hermione hissed. Piper shook her head and walked back up to the fort with Hermione.

The tavern was loud and noisy. After dinner, Hermione and Piper had found themselves being pulled along to the tavern, though Hermione greatly regretted the idea. Piper had met Vanora (and liked her quite alot) and was doing a good job of avoiding the half-drunk Romans and eventually settled herself with Lancelot, Gawain and Bors, who warded off Romans with a single glare. The only downside of this was Piper was earning herself spiteful looks from the women who worked the tavern. Piper shrugged off the feelings and bounced Vanora's youngest on her lap. Hermione had tried to stay with Tristan but he'd reverted back to his quiet self so Hermione helped Vanora.

"You're a good little server, chook." Vanora praised her. "A few years older and we could have you working the tavern with the older girls." Hermione tried to hide her shocked face.

"I doubt, Ron and Harry would like that." she replied.

"Oh I see." Vanora nodded. "Got your eye on one have ye?"

"No!" Hermione protested. "They're just my friends. My best friends. I've been through everything with them." Vanora nodded.

"Say, chook, ye any good at singing?" she asked, suddenly.

"What?" Hermione asked, startled. "Um, I'm okay I guess, I mean I sang karaoke at my cousin's last Christmas and everyone said I was okay but..." Vanora put a hand to her mouth, silencing her ramblings.

"Well that's good enough for me." Vanora smiled again and went out with trays.

"Wait, what did you mean?" Hermione asked, chasing after her.

"Vanora! Time for your sing song!" Bors called out to her, standing a little shakily and red in the face.

"Oh no, dear lover, for I have a very sore throat tonight, but Hermione can sing." Hermione stood still and prayed on the spot for the ground to open up and swallow her.

"What?!" Piper's voice rang through the crowd. She stode forwards, dumping the baby on Gawain. "Hermione, you're going to sing?"

"This isn't my fault!" Hermione whispered.

"Sing!" a voice shouted from the back and the crowd took up the chant.

"Oh help!" Hermione squeaked.

"Hey!" Piper yelled. "You can all stop that! You'll get your song!" the crowd quietened.

"But, what am I going to sing?" Hermione asked.

"Okay, keep calm. Think back, what songs did you listen to when you were little."

"Um, I used to listen to Queen alot."

"Okay, what song?" Hermione bit her lip and whispered in Piper's ear. Piper sighed and Hermione shrugged.

"We need a beat." Piper said resignedly. Hemione stamped her foot.

_Boom boom _Boom

Piper shook her head and banged a mug on the table.

_Boom boom _Boom

The two went around the tavern beating out the rhythm. Hermione made her way around too Dagonet.

"Hermione what are you doing?" he whispered.

"Just help me!" she replied. He looked at her for a moment then stood up. The whole tavern went quiet. After a few seconds he thumped his fist on the table_._

Boom boom Boom.

Tristan joined him, then Lancelot then Bors, until eventually all the knights were thumping rhythmecally on the tables. The whole tavern joined in and Hermione stood on a table and with a shaking voice sang:

_'Buddy you're a boy, make a big noise,_

Playing in the street, gonna be a big man someday,

You got mud on your face,

Big disgrace!

Kickin your can all over the place!'The whole tavern roared it's approval! Hermione grinned and pulled Piper up.

"Come on! You insisted!" Piper pulled a face but sang too.

_'Buddy you're a young man, hard man,_

Shouting in the street, gonna take on the world someday,

You got blood on your face,

Big disgrace!  
Wavin your banner all over the place' The two women grinned. The beat was still going.

_'Buddy you're an old man, poor man,_

Pleading with your eyes, gonna make you some peace someday,

You got mud on your face,

Big disgrace!

Someone better put you back into your place!'

'We will we will rock you!'

"We will, we will rock you!" the tavern responded. Hermione and Piper grinned, repeating those six words over and over.

"Hang on, I've always wanted to try this!" Hermione yelled to Piper and threw herself into the crowd! She gave a whoop as the crowd swept her along. Piper hesitated.

"Oh to hell with it! Look out!" and with a scream, she dove in too! Both yelled and whooped along with the others, until the knights got them. Hermione found herself on Tristan and Dag's shoulders while Piper was on Lancelot and Bor's. Everyone was having such a good time, they didn't notice a man in the corner watch the two wiccans with red eyes. He fingered a knife in his pocket but decided against it, afraid of not getting a clear shot. He blinked - and was gone.


	6. The Roman and the Dwarf

**Disclaimer: Own nothing, as before**

**Chapter 6: The Roman and the Dwarf**

_'Piper. Piper' Piper looked around her. She was in the white temple again. A feeling of peace came over her. 'Piper, Piper' now the voice was becoming clearer, almost recognisable and a figure was appearing through the whiteness. Piper felt an overwhelming sense of grief now loom over her, that she hadn't felt for a long time. Ever since..._  
Piper shot up in bed, heavy sobs racking her body. She had recognised that pain and she had accepted the fact that came with the pain, so why the hell was she feeling like she'd only just experianced it? She heard a rustling noise beside her and turned her head in time to see the candle flicker. The window wasn't open. Cautiously, Piper pulled back the covers and put her feet on the cold floor. Something blue streaked past her, nearly making her unbalance. She saw the books and ornaments rattle on it. Sighing Piper raised her hands, creating a time-freeze, a pot that had been rattling wildly froze and Piper padded across the bare floor towards it. Placing both hands on the vase she tugged it into the air. A little blue man had been standing behind it and as soon as Piper lifted the pot, he unfroze, nearly falling off the shelf in surprise. Piper raised her eyebrows as the blueman gazed up at her thunderstruck.

"Ah, I can't be bothered with you right now." Piper muttered at it, placing the pot, pointedly on the shelf. "But woe betide you if you wake me up again." she muttered as she pulled herself onto the bed and snuggled down under the sheets. Unaware that underneath the bed, something dark with red eyes lingered, before dissolving into shadow.

Once again Hermione was woke by a bright light.

"Rosie, can we not have such an early wake-up call please?" she groaned.

"Sorry miss, but the Knights are setting off today and I thought -"

"What?" Hermione shot up, only one part of Rosie's sentence registering.

"The Knights are leaving." Rosie repeated.

"But why?" Hermione asked, suddenly frantic.

"They have to leave on another mission for Rome. I dunno," Rosie shrugged. "They should be leaving soon and I thought you'd want to see them off." No more words needed, Hermione shot out of the bed and ran out the door, her nightgown flying out behind her. "Wait miss, your clothes!"

"Hang the clothes!" came the already distant reply.

As Hermione skidded into the courtyard, the first thing she saw was Piper talking to Arthur.

"Look out!" In her haste, Hermione hadn't seen a man carrying aload of armour and had collided with him. Hermione fell head over heels and landed in someone's arms.

"Hello Lancelot." she said, weakly, realising who had caught her. Lancelot grinned at her.

"Touched that you were so eager to see us off, but a little less haste maybe." Hermione blushed and nodded.

"Hello Hermione!" said Galahad, riding up next to them, already mounted on his horse. "We thought it was you." Hermione made a face and dropped out of Lancelot's arms. Unfortunatley, this made her seem quite small, standing next to the war-horse and his rider. Tentativley she reached out a hand and stroked the muzzel of the beast.

"What's his name?" she asked.

"We don't give them names. They serve us well in battle and are very loyal, but giving them a name risks getting too attached to them."

"Yeah, what's so wrong with that?"

"The fact that there is always a chance of either one or both of us dying in battle." Galahad answered solemnly. Hermione looked stricken.

"What have you said Galahad? The poor maid looks scared to death." Gawain asked, trotting over with Dagonet, Bors and Tristan.

"And cold." Bors put in, noticing Hermione exchange the weight on her feet slightly after a few seconds and the whiteness of her face.

"That's not an actual possibility is it?" she asked.

"What is?" Dag asked.

"You. Dying?" Hermione's voice was barely a whisper. No one replied, only exchanged looks. "But, I've seen the way you fight, you're brilliant. No Woad could stand against you."

"We used to be alot more than seven, Hermione." Dag said, gently. "We all know, that this final mission could be our last. And I think it's best you know too. Just in case..." Hermione was silent, the wind blowing a cruel draft through her thin night gown, making her shiver.

"The poor child's freezing." put in Bors, breaking the awkward silence. "Out here, in nigh but her under garments." Hermione had to laugh at that. Galahad bent down and offered his hand.

"Take it." Hermione did as she was told and found herself being pulled into the saddle infront of him. He wrapped his warm cloak around her.

"Don't worry, it's just the morning. Always cold, but it'll warm." Hermione nodded. She still wanted to ask so many questions, but something told her not too.

"Hermione! Quite an entrance kiddo!" Piper said, as she came over. "You look half frozen."

"I'll thaw later."

"Allright knights, listen up!" Arthur bellowed, nudging his horse over with Lancelot beside him, both of them on their own war-horses. "Now, arriving today will be Credus Daius Gnario. He will be here while we're away looking after things." Hermione felt Galahad stiffen as he pulled his arms closer around her, protectivly. Everyone looked around at the sound of a carriage rattling into the courtyard.

"We've never needed a Roman before." Gawain said, coldly. It surprised Hermione how disdainful the Knights had become.

"I know. But he's here to check up on things." even Arthur sounded like he wasn't all keen on the idea. A squat, unpleasant looking Roman stepped out of the carriage followed by a dwarf looking fellow, who sent shivers up Hermione's spine. He almost seemed to sense her stare, as he whirled around and met her gaze full on, with eyes full of malice. Hermione looked away, but she wasn't the only one having problems with this Roman. Piper was frowning, almost glaring at Credus Daius Gnario and his dwarf friend. "Anyway, Lady Hermione I'm afraid you'll have to get down now, because we've got to go." Arthur said.

"And quickly before the Roman makes some speech." Lancelot added. Hermione dismounted with the help of Piper and stared straight in the face of Arthur.

"I have a request, Sir Knight." she started, seriously.

"Oh? And what might that be?" Arthur asked, humouring her.

"That you come back alive. Or else you might understand what a great blessing it is too have one nose instead of five." Hermione grinned.

"Alright, Lady, if it'll put your mind at ease. We'll do our very best to come back." Arthur smile. "Forward!" He surged forwards on his horse, the other knights following. Piper dragged Hermione out of harms way and they both watched the Knights fade into the distance.

"They might not come back you know." Piper said softly, too Hermione.

"I know they will." Hermione grinned back. "At the moment, we've got bigger problems." she looked over at the Roman and the Dwarf who had been, staring at them. The Roman turned away but the Dwarf, flashed an evil little grin and making Piper suddenly in-take breath.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked as Piper placed a hand on her stomach, wincing slightly.

"Yeah, fine. The baby's deciding to do baby acrobatics in my stomach is all." Piper lied. "Hey, do you mind if we focus on the smaller first?"

"Like what?"

"Well, get dressed and I'll show you."

"There!" Hermione yelled. Piper froze, but it had just got away.

"So, what are we looking for, exactly?" asked Hermione.

"A Gremlin." Piper answered, peeking under the bed.

"A what?"

"A Gremlin." Piper repeated, on the floor, and swiping under the bed, only to unsettle a load of dust. "They're little blue creatures which are very fast and very mischevious. Usually, if you have gremlins in the house, they're mistaken for poltergeists. Can you give me a hand?" Piper asked, after several, failed, attempts to get off the floor. Hermione grabbed her hand and heaved her up. "Aaah! Not so fast! Slowly." Piper straightened up.

"So, how do we catch it -"

"Ssh!" Piper cut across her.

"If you said they were fast," Hermione whispered but was again cut off by Piper.

"Ssh! Listen." Hermione listened. She could hear the little scurrying of feet, like a mouse, it moved all around the room faster than any mouse.

"Now!" Piper yelled suddenly, making Hermione jump, spinning around and freezing. "Yes! Got it!" a little blue thing, no bigger than Hermione's thumb, was frozen in mid run on the floor. Piper crouched down, Hermione next to her and they both examined the little blue thing.

"How did you do that?" asked an awestruck Hermione. Piper shrugged.

"Witch's instinct." Piper shrugged , non-comitally. "A Witch's senses are sharper than a human's." Hemione made an 'O' shape with her mouth but didn't say anymore, as Piper had flicked a finger and the blue thing's head had become unfrozen. It tugged at itself frantically, obviously bewildered.

"Hello! Up here!" the blue creature's eyes widened in fright and it tugged more violently. "Hey that's enough!"

"Hagget didn't do nothing wrong!" it squeaked in a tiny voice. "Hagget was just being a Gremlin."

"It can talk!" Hermione said, stunned. "I thought you said they couldn't talk." she added in a whisper to Piper.

"They can't. Unless - " Piper's eyes widened. "Now, listen, Hagget wasn't it? Do you want to tell us what you were really doing here?"

"Hagget weren't doing nothing!" the thing protested.

"Un-uh! Wrong answer!" Piper said.

"Is the truth!" Hagget squealed. "Honestly it was!"

"Yeah, okay! I'm getting sick of this, Hermione would you be so kind as too levitate Hagget in the air for me?" asked Piper, straightening up. Hermione drew her wand.

"Her? But shes a human!" Hagget squeaked. "She couldn't possibly- " he stopped, abruptly as he rose into the air at the point of Hermione's wand.

"Just up there, if you please Hermione." Piper said. Hermione reluctantly raised the protesting Hagget into the air, close to the ceiling. "Right, now we can talk properly. " Hagget shook his head violently and pressed his lips firmly together. "I make things explode as well you know." Piper threatened.

"You wouldn't dare!" Hagget squeaked.

"You wanna bet?" Piper asked, raising her fist.

"Piper no!" Hermione protested, putting her hand on Piper's fist. "He's not a demon!"

"Well how else are we going to get anything out of him?" Piper asked. Hermione ignored her and lowered the Gremlin carefully onto Piper's bed.

"What are you doing?" demanded Piper, as Hermione pocketed her wand.

"We understand if you can't talk, but could you give us something?" asked Hermione, crouching down to face the Gremlin. "We aren't going to hurt you." Hagget suddenly burst into loud, howls.

"Oh! I is so sorry, witches! But he t...tortured... m..m..me! Said I had to watch the witches! Spy! He gave me a voice so I could report back! I been very bad, witches!" And he threw himself face down on the bed, screaming and kicking his legs.

"Shush! Please be quiet Hagget! Someone will hear!" Hermione begged in a strangled whisper. Haggest quietened a little.

"Hagget, who asked you to spy on us?" asked Piper, trying to conceal the fright in her voice. Hermione must've picked up on it as she turned to Piper, alarmed. Hagget looked at them, but his look of remorse andn self pity turned to one of alarm at the sight of someone behind them.

"Well, well, well, Ladies. I don't believe we've had the pleasure."

**Do you think SPEW involves Gremlins??????**


	7. Astral Projections and Mixed up Worlds

**Disclaimer: Come on people, you should know by now!**

**Chapter 7: Astral Projections and mixed up Worlds **

"Well, well, well, Ladies. I don't believe we've had the pleasure." Credus Daius Gnario stood in the doorway, the little dwarf man right behind him was the Dwarf man.

"Yeah, well, sorry about that, you've met us now, so if you'll excuse us..." Piper tried to squeeze past him, pulling Hermione with her, but the Dwarf drew his sword and held it across the door frame.

"I don't believe Bishop Credus Daius Gnario dismissed you." he said, in a wheezy voice. Piper glared at him, then at the sword, which glinted malicioulsy.

"And who are you?" she asked, her hands on hips. The Dwarf man grinned, displaying a set of nasty, crooked, yellow teeth.

"I am Nanus Maledico." he said, imperiously sheathing his sword with a horrible screeching sound.

"Well, that's appropriate." Hermione muttered. The Dwarf glared at her.

"Women should keep their tounges in their mouths." the Dwarf snapped. "You little mudblood!" Hermione looked stunned.

"Hey, you can't talk to her like that!" Piper protested.

"That's enough Nanus." Bishop Gnario commanded, as best he could in a pathetic, whiny voice. "I trust the ladies will be joining us for dinner."

"Do we have a choice?" Piper muttered to Hermione, a smile fixated on her face.

"Doesn't look like it." Hermione muttered back.

"Oh great. We'd be delighted!" Piper reverted back to her normal voice. 

"Charming, if we may escort you." Hermione stifled laughter as Piper reluctantly took the Bishop's outstretched arm and took dragging steps down the corridor.

"So how do you fair, milady?" the Bishop asked. Piper looked at him, Hermione snorted; 'Even Lancelot had better pick up lines than that!'. Evidently, Piper thought that too as she said,

"Married and pregnant."

"Run!" Piper yelled as she and Hermione bolted up the stairs, along the corridor and crashed into Hermione's room, laughing madly.

"Thank Goodness! I thought that would never end!" Hermione gasped, half with laughter, half with breathing difficulty.

"Now I know why Lancelot doesn't like church! I thought that sermon was going to last another hour." Piper added.

"Maybe it's small talk in his books," Hermione suggested, which set Piper off into another fit of giggles.

"Maybe it's small talk! Where did you get that - Aah!" Piper's laughing stopped abruptly as she clutched her stomach, doubled up in pain.

"What's wrong?" Hermione's giggles died as a look of alarm appeared on her face.

"Nothing, it's the baby. It's trying to tell me something." Piper lowered herself into a chair. "I think it's something to do with that Dwarf person."

"What, Nanus? Yeah, there's something strange about him."

"No, duh." Piper said, unhelpfully, rubbing her stomach. "Okay, calm down now, there's no evil magic that can hurt mommy around here."

"No I mean his name. Nanus Maledico. It's Latin for Evil-speaking Dwarf." Piper stopped.

"Hermione, what was the insult he called you?"

"When? Oh, then. It was Mudblood."

"What does that mean?" 

"It's a nasty name for muggle-borns - witches and wizards who have non-magic parents," she explained as Piper looked confused. "Usually used by the 'Pure-Wizarding Families'. It means literally, filthy blood." Piper looked thoughtful. 

"Then, why would a Roman with, judging by his comments, an extreme hatred of witch-craft whatsoever, know a wizarding phrase." Hermione stood there, stunned. "I think my baby was right. Something's going on."

"Well, what are we going to do?"

"Normally, if it were me or my sisters, I'd say carry on going, keep a look out abit more, but I can't risk you getting hurt Hermione."

"Why? Piper, I'll be fine."

"No, Hermione, you won't! You have no experiance in demon-fighting. It's dangerous."

"Which is why you're teaching me!" Hermione retorted. "Look, haven't you ever heard the saying, everything happens for a reason? Because I believe this did. I don't think it was just dumb luck that I'm here with you, I think it's fate. Like you said, all we have to do is keep our heads down low, do some chores or something, just until the Knights come back. They'll protect us."

"How can you have so much faith?" Piper asked.

"Because that's all we have left." Hermione answered.

"Hmm. Bad times?" Piper guessed.

"Extremley." Hermione nodded. Piper sighed.

"Allright, fine. We stay, on two conditions. One, if it gets too dangerous, we're out. And two, we need to get some kind of message to my sisters where we are." Hermione beamed, bent down and hugged Piper tightly.

"Thanks Piper."

"Yeah, yeah. Okay." Piper said, patting Hermione on the back and smiling. "Besides, I still need to teach you some Wiccan ways." Hermione beamed even more brighter, then her brightness faded a little.

"Piper, how are we going to contact your sisters?"

"Deep breaths. Visualize the destination. Breathe in." Hermione inhaled. "And now!"

"I'm still here." Hermione said, after a few seconds silence.

"Look, are you sure you're concentrating enough?" Piper asked.

"I'm concentrating so hard've got a headache!" Hermione snapped. She wasn't used to not doing things perfectly on the first time and she did so want to impress Piper.

"Well, there you go. Try and relax. Now lets try it again." Hermione huffed but closed her eyes. "Breathe in. And -"

"It's no use! This astral projection thing's too hard." Hermione exclaimed, almost on the verge of tears of frustration. Piper sighed. 

"Hermione, listen. It took me a long time to astral project. but you're trying to astral project into the future. That's about a hundred times harder."

"But Piper, we don't have a long time. We probably don't even have an hour. If what you're saying is true, demons are coming and we need to let someone know where we are." Hermione said. Piper thought for a moment. 

"Well, maybe all you really need is an extra power boost." Piper took hold of Hermione's wrist. "Try again." Hermione closed her eyes for the third time, and just as the other three times, focussed on Harry and Ron. But unlike the other three times, she felt a warm sensation flowing up her arm from where her skin was in contact with Piper's. It almost felt like they were being sucked into each other. Hermione tried to open her eyes but other images flickered in the way, like an old-fashioned picture show. Through the images, she saw Piper looking absolutely terrified. 

"Hermione." Her voice was like a distant whisper, the pictures pushed themselves forwards and it was only then, when Hermione realised what they were. They were of her, Ron and Harry. All their memories of the past four years they'd had together, but then sometimes a few but getting steadily more numbered, were pictures of three women, one of them was Piper. As the pictures continued, Hermione felt herself slip slightly from Piper's grasp, as if her insides were being torn away, but clinging on as well. 

"Hermione!" Piper called out, and Hermione breathed out.

Piper felt a headache in the back of her head, banging out a beat like someone's rock music turned up way too loud. Hermione had worked some serious magic there, Piper didn't even think that Hermione knew the full extent of her power and come to think of it where was Hermione? Piper looked around and for the first time noticed her surroundings. She was in a rather grand circular room with very archaic furnishings; oak writing desks, some large, squashy armchairs and couches were arranged in no particular order around the room and a large fireplace spread warmth and light througout. The floors were polished wood and covered with rugs, the walls were covered with tapestries and paintings... that were eyeing her with disregard and cautiousness, some were even muttering. If Piper hadn't been surprised she would have told them to stop staring and maybe threatened to blow them up. Something moved beside her and Piper screamed and flicked her hands. It was a good job her powers didn't work when astral projecting as two teenage boys were standing by the fire.

"Oh, er hi." Piper stood awkwardly.

"Who the bloody hell are you?" a ginger-haired boy asked.

"Piper, Piper Halliwell. Um, this may seem like a stupid question but, where am I?"

"You're at Hogwarts." the black-haired boy said. "You know, Hogwarts?" he prompted at the look of confusion on Piper's face. "You must be a witch to be here."

"Sorry, no I don't know."

"Are you a witch or aren't you?" the red-head demanded.

"Actually I'm a Wicca-witch." 

"Oh yeah, pull the other one. Let's see some magic then."

"Hello, Astral -projection; can't use powers!" Piper retorted. The boy's attitude was really getting on her nerves. "And why are those pictures moving?" 

"Because you're at Hogwarts. Hogwart's School for Witchcraft and Wizardry." the black-haired boy said, a little warily. Something clicked in Piper's brain.

"Wait, a minute. Do you know Hermione? Hermione Granger?"

"You know where Hermione is?" asked the black-haired boy, eagerly. 

"Well, I did." Piper muttered, looking around. 

"I'm Harry by the way." the black-haired boy said after a moment. "Harry Potter and this is Ron." he gestured to the other boy.

"Oh, you're Hermione's friends." Piper said.

"You know where she is?" Ron asked. 

"Yes, don't worry she's safe, I think."

"What do you mean you think?" demanded Ron.

"I mean, we both astral projected and we sort of switched routes. So instead of her projecting herself here, I did instead." Piper explained, shortly.

"So, where are your normal selves?" asked Harry.

"Ah, we're in King Arthur times."

"King Arthur? The King Arthur?" asked Ron, incrediously.

"Well, he's not King yet." Piper said, sitting down. "But listen, I don't know how much time I've got.We're taking quite a big risk contacting you."

"Why? What's the risk?" Harry and Ron said together.

"There's some... some... evil magic around. And we just needed to tell someone where we are. We're pretty much on our own."

"Isn't there Merlin or something?" asked Harry.

"Who?"

"Oh, come off it!" Ron said. "Merlin. One of the greatest wizards ever!"

"Yeah, I know who he is, I just don't think we've seen him yet. Maybe -" Piper broke off with a strangled gasp.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Harry put a hand on her shoulder.

"Nothing, it's just I'm being called back." Piper replied. "Back to my body." 

"By what?" Ron stood near Harry. "What's calling you."

"Or who." Piper added, darkly. "I've really got to go. It was nice meeting you. Both of you." and she disappeared. Harry and Ron stood in silence for a few seconds, staring where Hermione had just been.

"So, do we tell Professor Dumbledore?" Ron asked, hesitantly. 

"Definately."

Hermione was in a bright and homley-looking kitchen, with a cauldron and many herbs spread out on a table in the middle. Hermione stroked her fingers over the cauldron, gently. Witches obviously lived here. 'But good or bad?' a voice inside her head said. Something tells me I am about to find out Hermione turned around, hearing footsteps outside just in time to see a young woman with flaming red hair enter the room, her head buried in a book. Hermione, wondering what to do, tried to edge around the table - and knocked over a jar. The woman looked up, and her eyes widened.

"Oh my - What the hell are you doing in here? Don't you know it's an offence to enter someone's house uninvited."

"Um..." Hermione was at a loss for words.

"What's wrong, cat got your tounge?" the woman demanded. Hermione just stared.

"Paige, have you got the potion?" came a yell down the stairs.

"Yeah, hang on!" the woman yelled in reply.

"But there's a demon coming!"

"There's also a kid in the kitchen!" 

"What?"

"There is a kid in the kitchen!"

"Oh! What's a kid doing there?" Hermione bristled indignatantly at her being refrenced as 'the kid ' but something else was scrabbling at the back of her mind.

"Oh, never mind!" the woman sighed, exaggeratedly. "Now-" 

"Sorry, but did you say Demons?" Hermione cut across her. Now, it was the woman's turn to look awkward. "It's okay, I'm a witch, I'm..." Hermione took a deep breath. 'Oh well, it was going to come out sooner or later'. "I'm stuck in King Arthur times with Piper Halliwell, who's also a witch except now we've astral-projected here and I don't know where she is or where I am and we're being hunted by demons and anything can happen..." 

"Hold on a minute." the woman interupted. "Did you say, Piper?" Hermione stared, no more breathe to speak. Did only that one word make any connection in that woman's brain? 

"Paige? Paige! Come on, we have an emergency!" another woman, with brown hair had entered the kitchen, man with light blonde/brown hair followed her.

"She said she knows Piper." the woman, 'Paige', pointed at Hermione.

"You know Piper?" asked the other woman. Hermione looked at the two women's faces and remembered. They were the faces she'd seen in Piper's memories! When Piper had touched Hermione they must of made a link and swapped each other's destinations.

"You're Piper's sisters! The Charmed Ones!" Hermione said. Paige and the other woman exchanged glances.

"Okay, you're right. I'm Phoebe and this is Paige, Piper's sisters and this is Leo, Piper's husband."

"Hi, I'm Hermione." Hermione nodded at Phoebe. Silence descended.

"So, where's Piper?" 

"Oh, well, um I think she's with my body. We're trapped in the past."

"Where in the past?" asked Phoebe.

"King Arthur times." Paige breathed. 

"He's not King yet." Hermione added.

"Is the baby alright?" asked Leo, suddenly.

"Yeah, yeah, um... she can't get hurt. Literally, she heals." Hermione said. The three adults let out a breath of relief.

"But wait, you said about demons?" asked Paige.

"Oh, well, apparently I'm meant to be a very powerful Witch, so Piper's teaching me, it's just. Piper's sometimes not teaching me fast enough."

"What's happened?" asked Leo. 

"Nothing much, I've been shot by a Darklighter, that sort of thing, but I'm okay, because it only affects Whitelighters?" Hermione said the last bit hesitantly, as if waiting to see if it was correct.

"That's right." confirmed Paige also a little hesitantly. "Well, you've learnt something."

"Oh, you poor thing!" Phoebe suddenly leant forward and pulled Hermione into a bone-crunching hug.

"Uh, Phoebe." Paige said, awkwardly.

"Oh, right sorry." Phoebe relinquished her grip and Hermione felt the air flood into her lungs. Suddenly there was a bang upstairs.

"Oh no!" Paige exclaimed. "That'll be the Demon. You'd better go. Phoebe, grab the potion."

"Is it always like this?" Hermione asked Leo as Phoebe and Paige moved around the kitchen grabbing various items.

"No, it's usually lighter but since Piper's gone, they're trying to wipe out the Power of Three while it's weak." Leo explained.

"Hermione, listen. Return to Piper and tell her we'll figure a way to contact her, okay? But you really have to go now." Phoebe said, urgently.

"But I don't know how!" Hermione exclaimed. "I only just figured out how to get here!"

"Oh, honey, we'll help you with that!" Paige called. "Stake?"

"It's not a vampire Paige!" Leo pointed out.

"Well, what then?" Paige demanded. "Silver bullets?"

"Wait, will you be okay?" asked Hermione, as Phoebe passed. Phoebe stopped and looked at her.

"Come here," she answered, putting an arm around Hermione and pulling her away from Paige and Leo's argument. "Listen, the thing that makes a good witch isn't how much power they have or how many demons they kill. It's how much you're prepared to sacrifice for other people. How many innocents you save and Hermione, I think you're going to be a great witch someday. We'll be fine, as soon as you leave. To be honest the biggest problem I'm facing at the moment is my ex-husband." Hermione giggled.

"Okay, Hermione you ready?" Paige asked, scribbling something quickly.

"Yes." 

"Good, stand over there and don't move." Hermione obeyed and left Phoebe's side to stand in the middle of the floor. 

"Where are you witches!" bellowed an in-human voice from upstairs. "I can smell you."

"Any chance you can hurry up, Paige." asked Phoebe.

"This young witch still has much to learn,  
So back to her body may she return"

Hermione squeezed her eyes shut and felt the wind blow her away, not a fraction of a second too soon.

**Okay, so I'm going to break, (give you time to write reviews. Hint hint) so I can finish Chapter 8. As soon as I've posted it on harrypotter I'll post it here. Promise.**

**Luv**


	8. New Powers and Premonitions

Chapter 8: New Powers and Premontions.

Hermione and Piper both gasped and fell backwards, losing contact.

"Ow," Piper groaned. "Right on my spine!" Hermione pulled herself up.

"Are we back?" she asked. Before Piper could answer, quick footsteps were heard outside and Rosie burst in, making Hermione fall backwards again in surprise and Piper raised her hands, but stopped herself.

"I wish people wouldn't burst in like that!" Piper excalimed.

"Sorry, but the Bishop is coming and Nanus Maledico!" Rosie panted. Piper swapped a look of alarm with Hermione.

"Oh no, help me up! Help me up!" Rosie and Hermione grabbed Piper by the arms and hauled her to her feet, just in time as the Bishop appeared in the doorway.

"Ladies, pardon the intrusion." he bowed. "I'll come back later..."

"Not at all." Piper said breathlessly. "Continue, administrating your... administration."

"I was just wandering if I may have the priviledge of your company every dinner." he looked at Piper confidently. Hermione looked sideways at her mentor, unsure of the reaction but Piper was surprisingly very quick to agree.

"Yeah, of course, be an honour and all that but we're kind of busy now so can you just," she pushed him out and shut the door firmly. "Thankyou."

"Piper!" Hermione said, half-admiring, half-shocked.

"What? Quickest way to get him out." Piper said. Hermione shook her head. "I saw Harry and Ron." Hermione bit her lip.

"Yeah, I kinda hoped you had. I met Phoebe, Paige and Leo. They were just about to be attacked by demons. But they're holding out." she added, seeing Piper's face. "Phoebe said she would contact you." Piper nodded.

"Hey, is Ron always that lippy?" Hermione laughed.

"Mostly... um Piper?"

"What? I know what you're thinking. No more magic for a while..."

"Piper!"

"Though there are a couple of new potions I think we should try out..."

"PIPER!"

"What? What's wrong?" Hermione indicated behind her and Piper turned... but Rosie had already gone, the door shutting with a click.

A few days later

Hermione watched from the window, absentmindedly drying a plate and rocking Vanora's youngest in its crib with her foot.

"Vanora," she called. "When will the knights be back?"

"I don't know chook. Sometimes it's two weeks, sometimes two days, once it was two months but that's besides the point."

"It's been a week already." Hermione pointed out. "I'm worried that something's happened."

"Oh, those boys can handle themselves." Vanora dismissed. "Stop thinking about it - it will only make you worry more!" Hermione nodded and tried to push all thoughts to the back of her head. "So, you done with that dish?" Hermione nodded and handed it over.

"But what if -"

"Hermione!" Vanora said, sharply. "The knights will do their duties and come home!"

"What makes you so sure?" Hermione agonsied.

"Listen, you made them promise they'd come home right?"

"Yes, I made Arthur -"

"There you are! Arthur _always_ keeps his promises! Trust me, they'll be back!" Vanora placed a reassuring hand on Hermione's shoulder. Several things happened at once. Hermione felt a shock run down her spine and the plate crashed to the floor, smashing and waking the baby. Vanora took no notice, her eyes closed her breath drawn in. Under her eyelids, Hermione saw her eyes flickering as if watching something. Finally, she breathed out, stepping back from Hermione, leaning against the wall.

"Vanora?" Hermione asked, warily. "Are you alright?"

"The knights are back." Vanora breathed softly. She looked up at Hermione with tear-filled eyes, half reached out - when Rosie interupted.

"Miss! The knights are back!" she said to Hermione."They're in the courtyard!" Hermione looked back at Vanora, who had retained normal status.

"You go, I'll clean up." she told Hermione, bending down and picking up a piece of pottery. Hermione left, looking back over at the bar-mistress and the way her eyes watched Hermione go, as if she was afraid this would be the last she ever saw of her.

"Hermione!" Hermione turned to see Piper rushing to her side. "Did you see?"

"The knights are back!" saying it made Hermione suddenly feel a great release in her chest as she and Piper raced to the courtyard. The knights all rode in, looking very dirty and very tired. Hermione counted the horses. Seven horses. Hermione wrinkled her nose, seven horses but six men. Oh no. '_Where was Lancelot_?' she looked at Piper, who looked back anxiously, pulling Hermione to her. The knights began to dismount, Hermione watching them intently. It was only when Bors got down that she noticed someone riding behind him.

"Lancelot!" Piper breathed and Hermione felt her and Piper's tense body relax instantly, she wanted to run to them straight away but Piper held her back. A Roman officer was adressing the knights. They nodded and slaves came to take the horses. Hermione slipped free of Piper's grasp and ran forwards, dodging the soldiers, horses and slaves. Galahad saw her first and a grin spread across his muddy face.

"You're back!" she called as she threw her arms around him, nearly sending him flying, hugging him tightly.

"Told you we would be!" Galahad replied, brushing Hermione's hair out of his face.

"Hermione!" the rest of the knights had seen her and were coming over. Hermione released Galahad. '_Time for some serious hugging_' she thought as Gawain picked her up and swung her around. Over Gawain's shoulder, she saw Arthur and waved. Arthur waved back, smiling too.

"Hey stranger!" he heard a voice next to him. "Thought you'd be back."

"Hello Piper!" he greeted, bending down to hug her. "Good to see you."

"Good to see you too." Piper said. "Wow! Hermione looks loved!" she indicated Hermione, the teen witch recieving a bone-crunching hug from Bors. "Kids." she shook her head.

"Piper!" Bors roared, near dropping Hermione and racing over to Piper instead swinging her up. Hermione laughed at Piper's expression of utter shock, as she hugged Bors tentativly back.

"Don't suffocate the woman Bors." came Tristan's quiet drawl.

"Tristan!" Hermione exclaimed, half-opening her arms, but she caught herself in time. "Er, welcome back!" she said awkwardly, extending a hand. Tristan took it bemused and Hermione quickly reached up and kissed him on the cheek. Tristan looked surprised but didn't say anything. Thankfully Piper, who was hugging Gawain and Galahad at the same time, didn't see.

"Hey, is anyone going to help me with this lump?" demanded Dag, supporting the limping Lancelot.

"Dag!" Hermione's grin grew broader as the gentle giant pulled her into a one-armed hug.

"That's right, ignore the walking wounded!" Lance muttered, with fake hurt.

"How could we forget you?" Piper asked. "You never let us!" Hermione rolled her eyes but hugged Lancelot all the same. "What happened?"

"Shot by two Woads, stabbed by another. I'll be fine."

"You better be!" Piper warned him.

"Hey where's Vanora?" Bors demanded.

"She's just cleaning something up, she'll be here in a minute." Hermione said.

"No I won't, I'll be here now!" Vanora strode into the courtyard and immediately locked lips with her lover.

"Okay, Lancelot, lets get you into the tavern. Hermione, keep your eyes closed.

"Piper, I'm fifteen!" Hermione protested. "Not five!"

"Yeah, well I'm twenty-nine and it's grossing _me_ out!" Piper retorted, helping Dag with Lancelot.

"Oh, Hermione!" Lancelot called. "Could you run to my room and grab some bandages?"

"Sure." Hermione turned and ran back up the steps towards the knight's quaters. Piper watched her leave, saw her pass a large Centurion, one that looked suspiciously familiar.

"Piper come on!" Dag's voice brought her back to reality and Piper continued to walk, glancing over her shoulder as she went.

All the way to Lancelot's room, Hermione had a strange feeling. Like someone was watching her. Though, however many times she looked around. No one was there. Yet, when she continued walking, she heard her own footsteps and someone else's. Hermione's heart began to beat faster as she quickened her pace and near threw herself into Lancelot's room. She walked briskly over to the trunk at the foot of his bed, wanting to get the bandages and go as soon as possible. A loud bang made Hermione jump violently. A man, that Centurian she'd seen days before was standing there, his sword drawn.

"I have you now witch!" he growled, closing the door and making the key turn in the lock without touching it. Hermione gulped as the Demon raised his sword high above his head...

Lancelot hissed as Piper peeled away the material that clung to his skin. She made a face, then chucked it away and began to dab some stuff Vanora had given her onto the red.

"Still think I'm a huge baby?" Lancelot asked.

"All the time." Piper muttered. A knocking at the door made everyone in the tavern look up. Bishop Gnario walked in, Nanus Maledico right behind him. The Bishop's polite smile faded as he saw Piper tending to Lancelot's wounds.

"Bishop Gnario," Arthur bowed.

"Arthur," the Bishop's voice was cold, barely keeping his eyes off Lancelot and Piper. "It's good to have you back."

"It's good to be back." Arthur sat down.

"I hope the wounds are nothing serious." the Bishop commented in a tone which said he would prefer the opposite.

"We were lucky."

"I hope that luck doesn't run out - if it's the only thing keeping you alive."

"So does everyone! Arms up!" Piper's last words were a command to Lancelot as she wrapped bandages round and round his waist.

"Isn't there a barmaid who can do that?" demanded the Bishop, irritably. '_Aha!_'' thought Piper. '_I knew it_. '

"Don't worry, I had to do all this stuff when my husband was wounded." Piper said, not looking at the bishop.

"Husband?" the Bishop choked.

"Oh yeah, he knew one or two things about healing and taught them to me so I could heal him." Piper answered. The Bishop went white and made the sign of a crucifix on his chest. Piper bit back her smile.

"A drink is in order I think." the dwarf declared suddenly, clapping his hands. "Let us all vow not to leave this bar until every last drop is drained." The knights all mumbled agreement as servants began to bring in mugs of beer. Piper watched the dwarf suspiciously as she help Lancelot pull his top over his head. This wasn't like the dwarf at all. From his speech, Piper had gotten the impression he hated drink. But there was something evil in his eyes, a kind of '_I know something you don't know_' look. Like a cat who had killed a mouse and was just waiting for you to find it.

"Beer Lady Piper?" Piper took a mug and drank, keeping her eyes on Nanus Maledico - and the little blue thing jumping up and down on a shelf behind him. Piper choked, half the beer coming out of her nostrils and down her front. The little blue thing was the Gremlin, Hagget and it was pointing at Nanus and making faces.

"Piper, are you alright?" asked Gawain, nudging her with his elbow.

"Yeah, I think I'll see where Hermione has got too." she said, standing up.

"No!" the Dwarf screeched. Piper stopped still, watching him. "What I mean is, don't trouble yourself. I'll send a servant up in a minute. Your place is here." Piper raised her eyebrow at the last sentence but allowed Lancelot to pull her back down. The Gremlin rolled his eyes. The Dwarf had taken away its power of speech and it couldn't get the witch's attention without risking exposure. Then an idea popped into Hagget's head. A slave carrying swords was passing between the Dwarf and a shelf. On the shelf were a number of clay pots... Hagget sped into action, jumping from table to table, onto the shelf and giving the biggest pot a shove, nearly unbalancing himself in the process. The slave jumped as the pot hit the floor with an almighty crash, the swords flying out of his hands, one slicing the Dwarf across the hand. There was no blood. Slaves began milling around his hand.

"It's fine you idiots!" he snapped, hiding his hand up his sleeve but Piper had already seen. She stood slowly.

"I'm going to see where Hermione is." she said.

"That won't be necessary!" Nanus spat. "Sit down!"

"You going to stop me?" challenged Piper, half-raising her hands threateningly.

"Don't be impertenant woman! Or I'll call the guard."

"You can call the entire Roman Army for all the good that'll do!" Piper hissed. "Who's with Hermione?" Nanus didn't speak, but something in his eyes made Piper remember. _A Centurian standing by the wall... watching Hermione disappear into the building... before following_... "Oh God".

"Piper," Lancelot started, but Piper had already set off, sprinting out the door. "Piper!" The Knights cast looks at each other before running after her, Gawain not resisting the temptation of knocking over the dwarf as he passed.

As Piper entered the Knight's quaters, Hermione's panicked screams gave her an extra burst of speed. She skidded to a haltoutside Lancelot's door and wrenched on the door handle, which was of course locked.

"No, no, no!" Piper yelled, hammering on the door. "Hermione! Are you alright?"

"Piper!" Hermione sounded terrified, almost at crying point. "Help! There's a demon in here!"

"Can you get out?"

"No, he's blocking the- " Hermione's voice trailed off into another scream as the demon swung a blow at her, catching her legs, knocking her to the floor.

"Hermione..." The demon roared in delight and thrust his sword down, Hermione only just rolling out of the way in time. "Hermione, do you have your wand?"

"No, I left it in the -" more screams.

"Piper, move!" Lancelot gently but firmly elbowed her out of the way, into Arthur. "Hermione?" he asked, rattling the door knob. "Hermione!"

"Lancelot! Help me, please!" There was a banging on the door, an indication that she'd dodged the Centurian. "Lance-lot!" the last syllabel ended in a shriek and there was a dull thud, like someone plunging a sword into the door.

"Hermione listen to me. Can you get to the trunk."

"Yes."

"Open it, there should be a small sword." Hermione dodged another blow and flung open the trunk, rumaging frantically, she felt the cool metal hilt of the weapon, grasped it and swung it upwards. Metal clashed metal and the force of the blow sent vibrations down her arm. Even for a small sword, it still weighed a ton.

"Have you got it?"

"Yes, - I think it only fair to warn you that my sword fighting skills are far from adequate." Hermione panted and her words were too true. Within seconds, the sword had been knocked from her hands and she had been flung, bodily against a wall.

"Hermione!" she heard Piper's frantic cry, felt warm wet blood trickle down from her nose and in the reality of it all, she realised: '_She was going to die_'.

"Say you're prayers witch." the demon growled swung his sword high, Hermione flung out her arm, as if to bat the blow away... and the blow didn't come. Hermione watched, horror-struck as the demon flew backwards across the room, as if on invisible pulleys and crashed into a bookcase, knocked unconcious. Hermione, trembling, reached for the sword and stabbed the body. To her utter shock, the demon gasped and something black flew out of his open mouth. Hermione ducked as it disappeared out the open window, then carried on watching as the eyes turned from black to white to brown. The head lolled back, the body relaxed and blood poured out of the open wound.

"Hermione!" Piper called, anxiously pressing her hands against the door. With one sudden twitch, the door flew open and Piper nearly fell in. She stopped at the sight of the Centurian who was now bleeding profoundly. The Knights all crowded in behind her and looked in silence at the body. A sudden clang made them all start. Hermione had dropped the sword and was on her knees, tears mixing with the blood. Piper stepped over the Centurian (who was now, recognisable as a man) and put her arms around Hermione, rocking her gently.

"He wasn't a demon after all." Hermione sobbed. "I mur...murdered someone!"

"You weren't to know." Piper said, soothingly, stroking Hermione's hair. "You weren't to know." But, despite Piper's consolations, Hermione felt that she should've known and had killed a man that could've easily been Ron or Harry. Hermione buried her face in Piper's clothes. And she didn't want to think about how she'd stopped the man from killing _her_ either.


	9. Familiarity and Old Ways

Chapter 9: Familiarity and the old ways

"Beer?" Hermione bent down slightly, so the tray on which balanced mugs of frothing beer equally spaced, was at their level. The Roman soldiers took a beer each, not uttering a single word to her. Hermione smiled. A couple of days ago, Piper had had a bad experiance with a Roman soldier, that ended with him out of action for a couple of days with a dent in his head, which could neatly fit the edge of a beer mug. Undoubtedly, Piper was watching her at the moment.

"Stuck up pigs." came a voice in Hermione's ear.

"I told you Piper, we can't turn the entire Roman artilery into livestock!" Hermione said, turning to face the older witch.

"I know, but it ain't half tempting." she muttered. Hermione rolled her eyes, nudging Piper, gently as she passed.

"Hey chook. Not more beer surely?" Vanora asked.

"Afraid so." Hermione nodded.

"You know, it's a good job you're here, otherwise I'd be run off my feet!"

"Yeah." Hermione said quietly, scuffing her feet along the floor.

"How are you coping?" Vanora asked, softly. Having thrown herself on Hermione, when she came out of the room, supported by Piper and Arthur, Vanora was now extremely protective of Hermione, always watching her out of the corner of at least one eye.

"Good, you know a bit shaky, a bit nervous but other than that I'm good." Hermione reassured her, not wanting to remember the last week's events.

"Good," Vanora smiled. "Oi! Pansie! Don't come around that way - you'll fall over!" Hermione sighed and carried the tray away, as Vanora pushed her way through the masses of soldiers.

"Beer?" Hermione called out, stopping now and again as the tray was swarmed with hands, the occasional 'thanks' or 'cheers hermione' ringing out through the general babble. Out of the corner of her eye, Hermione saw something. A man in the corner of the tavern, smoking a pipe silently, soft flares illuminating a pair of green eyes under his hood every so often. Hermione was sure he hadn't been there before. As she got closer her suspicions became confirmed as she saw droplets of rain on his cloak. "Excuse me, sir." Hermione began awkwardly. "Would you like a beer?" He didn't say anything but reached out and took the last tankard. Hermione saw a silver ring on his finger but the hand was, almost deliberatly obscured by the mug as quickly as Hermione had time to blink. Sure she had been caught looking, Hermione turned to go quickly.

"Oh you may not think I'm pretty,

but don't judge by what you see..

I'll eat myself if you can find...

A smarter hat than me... well yeah old friend. Rowena had bonnets which could rhyme better than you!" the man snorted into his drink. Hermione turned slowly.

"Um... excuse me, " she started. "I couldn't help over hearing." the man looked at her. Taking his silence as a good sign, Hermione quickly launched herself into an explanation. "It's okay. I mean I know. About Hogwarts and everything, in fact I went there - am still going there."

"Oh?" Hermione could see the man's skeptical expression by his tone of voice.

"Yeah. You see, I come from the future. Me and Piper - she's over there." the man glanced briefly over to where Hermione was pointing before returning to his pipe, un-interested.

"Who are you? Are you a founder?"

"Take a wild guess." Hermione looked at him, confused. He seemed to be enjoying her recognition, rather than wary. She took in his dark cloak, the colour unable to be made out in the dark of the night. His clothes were equally bleak. In fact the only thing not dark was the silver ring. It was extremly detailed, the shape of a serpant coiling around his fore-finger, each scale delicately out-lined, each fang glinting in the snake's open mouth.

"A snake." Hermione whispered, realisation creeping over her. "Slytherin."

"From your tone, it seems I'm not all that popular in the future." The man smirked.

"Salazar." Hermione almost couldn't bring herself to say it. "Salazar Slytherin. The founder who ran away, the founder who built a chamber underneath the school, cloaking a basilisk which, once unleashed, attacked purebloods. The founder who's desendant is the Darkest Wizard of the age." the last few words came to Hermione with a sudden rush of shock and fear.

"You do know me child - you know me as I have undoubtedly been portrayed by my fellow founders."

"There's not a witch or wizard that went bad that wasn't in Slytherin." Hermione whispered. The man smirked again, but it did not reach his eyes. There was a hard coldness in them - a very dangerous ice. Hermione stood up abruptly, all the numbness in her body giving way to instinct. The wizard and witch stared at each other, hard green eyes locking with scared brown ones.

"Hermione! Come on, time for Vanora's sing song!" the voice of a very drunk Galahad broke through the fog in Hermione's brain.

"Coming." Hermione replied, in a voice which was more like a croak. She cast one last look at Salazar before running off to join Piper and the Knights. Salazar watched her go, the tankard still at his lips but no beer entering. There was something about the girl which disturbed him. Like she was a dam, with colossal amounts of pressure building up behind it. No doubt he wouldn't have to wait long before it was displayed, he thought as he drained the tankard with one gulp.

Something short was poking Hermione in the face. She frowned and batted it away, turning over in the covers to continue sleeping. A few seconds later and the thing was back, consistently poking her. Hermione opened one bleary eye and found a huge pair of brown eyes staring back. Hermione closed her eyes again, the sight of brown eyes processing in her brain. When she had fully registered what she'd seen, she sat up with a start. The room was still dark, the curtains not yet drawn. There were no brown eyes to be seen. With a strange sense of fore-boding, Hermione peeked over the edge of her bed. Nothing! She felt relief swell through her. A big fat Nothing! _Pull yourself together Hermione_! she chided herself. _You probably imagined it_ - A sudden noise startled Hermione, so that she fell off the bed and landed on the floor. Light streamed into the room, the curtains having been ripped apart by forces unknown. All hopes of passing it off as imagination vanished, as Hermione stood on shaking legs and went over to the window. It was a clear day, with grey clouds, promising rain lurking in the distance. _What am I saying_? Hermione thought. _Here I am with an unknown something in my room and I'm giving a weather report_! It was then, Hermione noticed the heavy wooden door which lead into an adjoining room was slightly open. Trying not to make any noise, Hermione padded, bare-footed to it and peered round it cautiously. No one was there.

"Mistress need me to close the door?" Hermione shrieked and turned around violently, the door slamming shut on her fingers. A houself was standing in the middle of the floor, with an old sheet wrapped around it like a dress. "Mistress took quite a bit of waking up!"

"What?" Hermione managed to gasp, her fingers throbbing like a base drum. Hermione stuck them in her mouth and watched, amazed as the houself began to levitate blankets and pillows, arranging them on the bed.

"Mistress is quite a violent sleeper!" the houself tutted, disaprovingly. "Quite a lot of mess she makes!"

"Homaro?" Hermione asked, a mouthful of fingers.

"Is Mistress hurt?" the houself squeaked. "Sit down on the bed and lets me have a look." the houself pushed Hermione back so she was sitting down and took her fingers. "Mistress must have less haste!" it chided.

"Who are you?" Hermione repeated.

"I is a house-elf -"

"Yeah, I know _what_ you are, I'm asking _who_ you are."

"My name is Mehitabel." Mehitabel answered.

"Can we shorten it, Mehitabel is a mouthful -"

"No!" the house-elf said, sternly. "It is the name my Mistress gave me and that is the name I keep."

"Who is your Mistress, Mehitabel?" Hermione asked, struggling to get the name out.

"My Mistress Bright-Lights is doing some chores somewhere else." Mehitabel told Hermione, pulling some bandages out of the folds out of the old sheet.

"Oh, and where's Rosie?" Mehitabel frowned.

"Mistress Bright-Lights is doing some chores." the elf repeated, slowly. "Mistress needs to learn to listen!" Hermione thought about Mehitabel's words.

"Mehitabel, where are my clothes, I need to see Piper!" she said to the elf. Mehitabel tutted and raised her hands. Almost instantly, Hermione was surrounded by bright white lights. When the lights disappeared, Hermione was wearing a soft white cotton dress with a clean, long blue pinnifore over it. "Thankyou!" she flung over her shoulder as she ran out the room.

"Witches." Mehitabel tutted.

"So what do you think Sirius?" Harry and Ron were kneeling over the common room fire, Sirius's head poking out of it.

"Have you told Dumbledore?"

"No, not yet. We were asking you if we should."

"Should? Harry, my dear boy, of COURSE you should tell Dumbledore! I'm surprised you haven't already -"

"So she's really in that much trouble, Sirius?" Ron cut in.

"You said she was with a Wicca-Witch?" Ron nodded. "Well, she should be safe enough. Wicca-Witches don't need wands to use magic," he added to Harry. "The only real danger is Demons -"

"DEMONS!" roared Ron, banging his head on the roof of the fire-place and making a few ashed fall into Sirius's mouth.

"Shut _up_ Ron!" Harry hissed, clapping a hand over Ron's mouth. "What do you mean by Demons Sirius?"

"Well, they're like bad wizards. Except maybe bad is a little light. More like Evil. So evil that they've lost their humanity. Most of them were Wicca-Witches, so that's the type of blood they attack."

"Has there ever been an attack on a Wand using Wizard or Witch?" Harry asked.

"Very rarely. It's the powers that the Demons want. They can smell the power from a mile off."

"Piper was quite powerful." Harry admitted.

"Well she'd have to of been, to have astal-projected all the way from the King Arthur era."

"So that means that..." Harry trailed off.

"The more powerful the Wicca, the more powerful the demon." Sirius agreed, nodding.

"And that means Hermione?" Ron asked, looking mortified. "We gotta tell Dumbledore -"

"Hang on a minute Ron." Harry grabbed Ron's sleeve, forcing him to stop. "Piper said that Hermione projected too. She said that they switched roots, so when Piper came here, Hermione must've gone to Piper's home!"

"Go to Dumbledore immediately! Tell him everything!" Sirius urged them. "I don't know how reliable Wand-magic is against Demons."

"Harry, what are you waiting for? Let's go!" Ron urged, carefully avoiding the fireplace as he stood up.

"Wait, Sirius." Sirius blinked up at him. "How do you know this stuff?" Harry held his breath as Sirius seemed to think of an answer.

"Because... Because... One of your mother's friends was a Wicca-Witch. She was killed by a Demon. He shot a ball of fire at her and she... just went." Sirius paused. "Ashes to ashes."

"Did they catch the Demon who did it?"

"No. Voldemort got there first and took it away." Harry's eyes widened. The thought of Voldemort alone was scary, not counting the Death Eaters, but the thought of Voldemort in control of a Demon. Harry shuddered.

"Sirius I -" but Sirius was gone.

"Piper, Piper I need to talk to yooooooooooooooouuuu!" Hermione shrieked as she fell over, yet again in her haste, down the stone steps to the kitchen, only to be caught by Lancelot - again.

"Hermione! I'm very touched but seriously injuring yourself isn't going to make you see us any quicker." he grinned, setting her down. Hermione tutted, before going over to Piper.

"Piper, I need to talk to you." she said, urgently.

"About what?" Piper asked.

"Outside!" Hermione exaggerated the word, hoping Piper would get the hint, but it seemed Piper was feeling extremely pregnant this morning.

"Why?" Hermione rolled her eyes and noticed all the Knights ear-wigging in.

"Uh - Women's problems." she said quickly, kicking herself. Piper's eyes turned wide and the Knights all looked away, spontaniously.

"Oh." she said. "Oh, in that case," she got up. "Back in a sec!" she called, striding out of the tavern, a blushing Hermione right at Piper's heels. Once they were in an empty room, and Hermione had shut the door, Piper turned to her. "Okay, what's wrong, cause I gotta tell you, i haven't had much experiance in -"

"It's not women's problems Piper!" Hermione snapped. Piper looked confused.

"What? Then why did you say in there?"

"Because you were being exceedingly obtuse and wouldn't leave!" Hermione said. "I think I might've found something."

"Found what?" Piper asked.

"You know Rosie?"

"You're maid? Yeah, I know her."

"I think she's a White-lighter." Hermione whispered, excitedly.

"What? No way!" Piper said.

"No, Yes way! Listen, this morning I was woken by a house-elf."

"A house-elf?" Piper asked.

"Yes! A house-elf" Hermione said, exasperatedly. "Anyway, this house-elf was here so I asked; 'Who's your mistress?' and she says; 'Mistress bright-lights is busy' or something like that, so I say; 'Where's Rosie?' and she repeats. 'Mistress bright-lights is doing chores!'"

"Hermione, are you sure?" Piper asked.

"Yes of course I is! I mean, of course I am!" Hermione shook her head. "Don't you see it all fits! And if she's a White-lighter, it means that it's extra help!"

"It also means we'll have another damn Dark-lighter on our backs!" Piper retorted. Hermione opened her mouth to respond but her features of annoyance turned to alarm as she saw the door open behind Piper.

"Piper, behind you!" she yelled.

"What?" Piper yelled as well, spinning and freezing on the spot. Rosie was standing in the door way, struggling with a pile of washing and the door, which wouldn't fully open.

"Rosie!" Hermione said. "For the love of Ron's maroon sweatshirts! Please don't do that!"

"Hang, hold up, kiddo." Piper backhanded Hermione lightly, still staring gob-smacked at Rosie. "She's not frozen!"

"What?" Hermione hissed.

"She's not frozen!" Piper replied.

"Yeah, that's probably because it caught the door!" Hermione said.

"Well there's one way to find out!" Piper flicked her hands at the unsuspecting Rosie. Rosie gasped as the washing fell from her grasp and she exploded into blue lights which jangled up and disappeared before coming back down again, Rosie reappearing and looking extremely flustered. "Aha! Gotcha!" Piper said, triumphantly.

"How did you know that would work?"

"I might've blown up Leo once or twice – hey! Come back here!" she exclaimed, pelting after Rosie who'd run out into the corridor.


	10. The Other Side

**Right, I DO have an excuse for not updating sooner! Basically, I wrote this chapter, had it all figured, ready to post - when my data stick I had stored it on decided to crash on me! (which is also why there might be a delay in some other fanfictions as well!) But here you go! Chapter 10 - again!**

Chapter 10: The other side

Hermione and Piper pelted down off the hall, but Rosie had evidently had more practice in running in long skirts than they had, for she was disappearing down corridors faster than they could turn them.

"Hold it!" Piper stopped Hermione. "We'll never catch her like this!" she flicked her hands and once again, Rosie disappeared in bright blue orbs, before coming together again, looking slightly fazed. Hermione and Piper took advantage of this and raced to her side, Hermione grabbing one arm and Piper the other.

"Alright, alright, you got me." Rosie told them, a little resentfully. "I won't go anywhere!"

"Promise?" Hermione asked, warily.

"Yes!" Rosie agreed, instantly. "I promise!"

"Okay then!" Hermione let Rosie's arm drop. Piper looked at her, a frown crossing her face but dropped Rosie's other arm as well. Rosie instantly raised both hands to her head and massaged her temples.

"I wish you wouldn't do that!" she groaned. "It throbs like hell."

"I'm sorry, you didn't really give us much of a choice." Piper pointed out, her arms folded.

"How did you figure it out in the first place?" Rosie demanded.

"Well, it wasn't so much me as Hermione." Piper said. Hermione waved.

"Sorry, Mehitabel inadvertantly helped." she apologised. Rosie sighed.

"Well, that's just great! If a kid can discover that I am a White-lighter, it's a matter of time before the demons will. Ah! They're going to kill me!" Hermoine turned a deaf ear to her usual reference as: 'kid'.

"Oh, up there, huh?" Piper asked, nodding her head, understandingly.

"Yep, sons of bitches all of them!" Rosie muttered darkly. Hermione's eyes widened at this other side of Rosie. Whatever she was, she was a damn fine actor!

"So, are you here to watch over us or someone else?" Piper demanded.

"I was assigned a charge a couple of years back. A Wicca-Witch, living in the fort. You two coming along was just a coincidence - or fate. Both of them meaning more work for me."

"Well, Piper can take care of herself, she's got an invinsible baby in there!" Hermione pointed out, gesturing to Piper's belly. Rosie looked indifferent.

"No, I've still got another Wicca-Witch to look out for." she said. Hermione could see Piper's eyebrows knit together in confusion, but before Piper could open her mouth, Hermione felt a cold hand on her shoulder. She screamed, whirled around and flung out her arm. Although her hand made no contact, everyone turned to see a figure flying at full-speed towards a wall, hitting it with a sickening _crack_.

"Whoa." was all Piper said. "Hermione, did you -?"

"I don't know." Hermione answered, staring wide-eyed. Piper raised her eyebrows but pressed her lips together and went cautiously forward. "What did I do?" Hermione asked, directing this question to Rosie.

"That, my young charge, was a rather impressive display of telekenesis." Rosie answered.

"Telekenesis? What -"

"You're a Wicca-witch. Rather powerful one as well. Your powers have been lying dormant for a while. I guess meeting up with Piper and then being in a situation of unknown woke them up. My guess: they're triggered by fear or panic." Hermione nodded, her mouth dry. She looked over to where Piper was bending over the figure, which was now stirring. She crouched down and heaved it (or rather _him_) to his feet, before moving a short distance away and raising her hands defensivley.

"Alright, any sudden moves or tricks and your manhood suddenly might disappear." Piper warned him. "Or rather, be blown to the 21st Centuary." the guy let out a rather corse, but netherless slightly familiar laugh to Hermione's ears. She gasped.

"You!" Salazar looked up and raised his eyebrows.

"You."

"Wait, you two know each other?" Piper demanded, looking between them.

"Know _of_ each other would be the more appropriate phrase." Hermione muttered.

"Well, could you maybe enlighten us?" Piper prompted. Hermione sighed and opened her mouth.

"Oh no, allow me!" Salazar declared. "I am Salazar Slytherin, the lowest, meanest and most prejudice founder of Hogwarts. I am known infamously for my slyness and deception, having built a secret chamber in Hogwarts that houses a monstor that was sent to kill all the Muggle-borns, my relations have spawned what seems to be the darkest wizard of the age. I am lying, evil, malicious and in short: not to be trusted man."

"This is not the appropriate time to joke." Piper told him, frowning.

"Really? But those are the lines of the description, your young niece gave me, upon making my acquaintance yesterday." Salazar said, cooly, looking at Hermione, who flushed. "Though, I doubt it's her fault. It is merely how I have been represented by my co-founders. Though, I have to say my dear, none of us were as powerful as you. I believe there are few Wicca-Witches who can still wield a wand."

"You know she's a Wicca then?" Rosie asked. Salazar nodded.

"Yes - ever since she first talked to me. Wand-Witches and Wizards don't smell of magic as much as she does."

"You _smelt_ her magic?!" Rosie demanded. "Oh bloody hell!"

"Is that bad?" Hermione asked, worriedly as Rosie was now pacing the floor, agitatedly.

"Hermione, you're more powerful than you know. All that magic stored up inside you, like a dam waiting to burst, it's radiating out waves just to releave the pressure." Rosie explained. "And that's what the demons smell -"

"The more powerful the witch," Hermione cut in, realising.

"The more powerful the demon." Piper finished, going over to stand by Hermione and squeezing her hand.

"You got it." Rosie nodded. "Which is why, I am a tad stressed. Three extremely strong Wicca-Witches in one place at the same time is like shining a light in the dark! They'll come, you realise," she added to Piper. "And we can't even borrow some glamour to cover it up!"

"So, what do we do?" Piper asked. Rosie thought.

"The way I see it," she began. "Is that Piper can pretty much take care of herself. My original charge doesn't even know she has powers yet but Hermione needs to learn - and fast!"

"Learn what? How to be a Wicca?" Piper thought for a moment. "I can teach her that, but I think that she should still learn Wand-magic as well. She's more confident in that."

"True." Rosie agreed, shrugging. "I guess that isn't a problem." she looked over, pointedly at Salazar, who raised his eyebrows.

"Sorry, can't help you." he said, flatly.

"Why not?" Rosie asked. "You don't exactly have anything to loose!"

"I'm beginning to like this side of Rosie." Piper whispered to Hermione who smiled slightly.

"I left Hogwarts to stay away from teaching, not to pick it up somewhere else!" he retorted.

"Well, put it this way." Piper broke in. "That threat about your manhood still stands and you know I can do it too!" Salazar glared, coldly at her, but before he could answer, there were footsteps from the corridor outside.

"Lady Piper?" came Arthur's familiar, polite tones.

"Oh no!" Rosie squeaked, orbing out quickly, the blue lights just disappearing through the ceiling as Arthur entered, Lancelot and Bors either side.

"You alright?" Lancelot asked, looking at the two with concern, evidently picking up on Hermione's flushed face and Piper's pale one.

"Yes, we're fine. Just, the weather you know." Piper told them, off handedly. All men nodded and suddenly caught sight of Salazar.

"And who's he?" Lancelot inquired, his tone suddenly harder.

"He?" Piper asked, flawed for a second, she turned to face Salazar, who kept his eyes to the floor. "He," she said again, turning back to face the three men. "He is my long lost brother, back from the wars." There was a loud crick as Salazar's neck shot up in surprise and Hermione nearly fell over. Arthur, who seemed to not notice this behaviour seemed convinced and went over to Salazar, shaking his hand warmly.

"You are welcome here, sir. Any friend or relation of Piper and Hermione's are welcome here."

"Thankyou my lord." Salazar said, looking Arthur straight in the eye like an honest man.

"No, thankyou. I bid you come and dine with us tonight, you will be our guest." Arthur invited him.

"I... will. Thankyou, I am very much obliged." Salazar agreed eventually.

"Good. I will see you ladies later?" Arthur directed this towards Piper and Hermione.

"See you Arthur." Piper said, curtsieing.

"Yes, see you Arthur." Hermione agreed, giving a short wave and smiling. The three men smiled back and left without another word.

"Right, well, come on Hermione. We have some work to do." Piper said, decisivley, turning to go.

"Wait!" Salazar, called. "Why did you do that?"

"What, get you invited to dinner?" Piper shrugged. "I figure I'd lay the guilt down on you a bit. You know, we do something nice for you, you do something nice for us sorta thing." Salazar frowned.

"And how did you know it would work?"

"Well, I didn't, but I'd say that threat of blowing up your manhood had you pretty convinced already!" Piper smiled. "Which _still _stands by the way. Come on Hermione." and with that, she swept out the room, Hermione beside her, Salazar's snort of: '_women_' following them out.

**Phew, glad that's over! Now chapter 11 - and there won't be a shorter delay this time!**


	11. Beautiful Words

**That wasn't so long was it? :) I'm getting better! penguin claps - thanx to everyone who reviewed, it gives me the impulse to carry on! Anyway, chapter 11 - enjoy! Anyone guessed who Rosie's original charge is? All below!**

**X**

Chapter 11: Beautiful words

"Good morning world, where everything is perfect and the people inside are all beautiful!" Piper declared, coming into the round-table hall. Arthur looked at Hermione, eyebrows raised.

"Mood-swing." she explained. The eyebrows rose higher. Hermione smiled, anticipating what he was thinking: '_thank god the mood swang in the right way_!'

"Oh! Careful, Betsy!" Vanora called, running over to a slave-girl. "Don't take two trays in, you'll drop them!"

"Morning Vanora!" Piper practically sang as she sat down to a very nervous looking Galahad.

"Morning Piper," Vanora smiled. "Eggs? Two, lightly scrambled with a pinch of pepper?" Hermione frowned, but Piper seemed too hyped up to notice anything.

"Yes, please! It was like you read my mind!" and then Piper giggled. Vanora nodded and made to leave, but not before catching another slave by the arm and warning it too: "be careful of the slippery patch around Lancelot's chair." Now Hermione was confused. Vanora hadn't been standing anywhere near Lancelot's chair. He was sitting opposite the room, next to her - and now she looked, there was no slippery patch.

"What you reading, kiddo?" Piper asked her, bringing her out of her thoughts. Hermione raised the thick, leather bound book so Piper could see the title. "It's in Latin."

"Yes, it's a history book. It's actually extremely interesting -"

"Sorry I asked." Piper muttered to Gawain, making him snort into his drink. Hermione gave them the exasperated look, she normally bestowed on Ron and Harry and slammed the book shut.

"HEY!" a sudden cry made everyone look up. Hermione watched as a spear fell from a roman suit of armour, making some poor slave trip and stagger, banging into Lancelot's shoulder just as he was drinking. The drink, consequently went over his shoulder and onto the floor - where another slave slipped on it, the pig he was carrying on a tray being propelled into the air. Hermione watched in horror as the knife that was embedded in the carcas, worked it self loose and seperated. The pig came down on Bors's head - but the knife went straight for Hermione.

"Hermione, move!" Piper yelled, and Hermione did, in fact, she moved so quickly she met the floor with a rather large crunch, but that might've been because Rosie had launched herself at her and was now lying on the floor beside her. Rosie quickly got up and crouched infront of her, blocking the Knights' and Piper's view.

"Rosie what are you...?" Hermione began but Rosie pressed a finger to Hermione's lips and pressed the other hand to Hermione's bare shoulder, the skin having been grazed as she hit the floor. There was a bright light and Hermione felt a sudden warmth flow through her veins. Rosie removed her hand and the warmth was gone as soon as it came, leaving a patch of newly healed, healthy skin. Rosie flashed Hermione a quick smile before pulling her to her feet.

"Hermione, are you alright?" Arthur asked, as they all grouped around her, concerned.

"Yep, I'm good. I'm fine!" she said, loudly to everyone. "Lucky Rosie was here." Rosie blushed.

"Wow, Vanora it's a good job you told the slave to mind the slippery patch, I don't know what kind of disaster would've happened if you hadn't of." Piper observed. Everyone looked at her. "What? I'm pregnant leave me alone!" But the brain cells in Hermione's head were suddenly working themselves into over-drive.

"Piper, can I talk to you? _Now_?" she asked, grabbing Piper by the arm and literally dragging her from the room.

"What is it?" Piper demanded, irritably.

"Rosie's charge. I think I know who it is." Hermione hissed at her. Piper stopped being moody and widened her eyes.

"Really? Who?"

"You know how Vanora knew that there was a slippery patch on the floor before it was even made? And she knew what kind of eggs you wanted before asking, and a while back, she knew the Sarmation Knights were back before it was even announced. What if she didn't know? What if she saw?"

"Premonitions." Piper said, her eyebrows rising steadily. "Maybe..."

"Oh, come on Piper, it all fits!" Hermione said, exasperatedly. Piper frowned and rubbed her forehead, just as Vanora left the great hall, Rosie just behind her. The white-lighter turned when she noticed their gaze and shook her head at them exasperatedly, smiling. "You see?"

"Oh boy." Piper said, staring open-mouthed. "Vanora. I never would've thought..."

"I bet that was Rosie's plan as well." Hermione said, waving cheerily. "Anyway, see you!"

"Where are you going?" Piper asked. Hermione grinned.

"I've got school."

Nanus stormed into the Underworld cavern, kicking a few low-level Demons.

"You!" he barked at one. "What are you?"

"A Grimlock, your liege." the demon hissed.

"Oh. Really. Then tell me Grimlock, WHY IS IT I THROW MY BEST DEMONIC HENCHMEN AT THOSE TWO AND THEY ARE STILL BREATHING?" Nanus stormed in his face. The Grimlock shrank back.

"The elder one seems to be carrying a baby." said a voice from the shadows. "A baby that makes her immune to all magic."

"Who are you?" Nanus spat.

"I am Vector," the voice slid into the open.

"Well then, _Vector_, how did you find this out?" Nanus sneered.

"Simple spying." Vector shrugged.

"Ignore him!" the Grimlock yelled. "He is a low level demonic bounty hunter. Simple is all he's capable of!"

"Pardon me, but it's because of my low-levelness that I was able to get this information." Vector told him, icily. "The white-lighter has put up a barrier that no upper-level demons can get through without being detected." he said to Nanus. "I could slip through because I was registered as no big threat."

"Okay, okay, we get the picture!" Nanus snapped. "So the elder one is immune to magic, big whoop, we only need one dead anyway. What about the younger, the girl?"

"She is a Wicca-Witch but also practises Wand magic." Vector said, swiftly. "Her powers are unstable and I doubt she is in full control of them. However she is getting lessons in both and the white-lighter is watching her every move."

"Damn." Nanus cursed. "Next time the Darklighter comes through, remind me to employ his services."

"Sir." a Lazarus demon ventured. "Why is it so important to kill these witches?" Nanus looked at him.

"You ever heard of the Charmed Ones?" he asked. The Lazarus demon shook his head, cautiously. "An ancient, powerful form of good magic. Three sisters. That power is a few centuaries away but there is records of something... astronomical happening around here."

"The Charmed Ones." the Lazarus demon rolled the words over his tounge. "But I still don't understand..."

"Beneath one of these buildings is something called a Nexus - ever heard of a Nexus?" the Lazarus demon shook his head, eyes all wide. Quick as a flash Nanus spun an energy ball at him, making him disintergrate. "Now you have."

"Sir, if you want to kill the younger witch I suggest you attack soon. Since her powers are so unstable, maybe you should try a Wand-warlock -" Vector began but Nanus cut across him.

"Fine, yes! The Charmed Ones are protecting the Nexus - do whatever it takes just GET HER KILLED!" Nanus bellowed.

Hermione knocked on the door. "Can I come in?" she asked. The door open to reveal Salazar, in an open black shirt, black trousers and black boots. he glanced at her lazily.

"You got your wand?" he asked. Hermione drew it out of her sleeve to show him. He nodded and moved aside to let her past. Hermione squeezed through, trying not to touch him and he closed the door behind them. Suddenly he turned and fired a jet of red light at her. Hermione, caught unawares, was hit and blown backwards. She landed on the floor, heavily. She sat up, glaring. Salazar took no notice, fiddling with his wand. "What are you doing down there?"

"You stunned me." Hermione said, through clenched teeth.

"Your point?" Salazar asked. "You think a wizard is going to stand there and ask 'By your leave?' _before_ he attacks? No! He's going to hurl any bloody spell he wants _at your back,_ possibly. Now let's try again." Hermione got up in stony silence and walked to the middle of the floor. Salazar began to walk a very slow circle around her, almost as if he was sizing her up. Hermione let him walk, her hand gripping her wand, tightly. She could almost sense him lift his wand.

"Protego!" she shouted, spinning awkwardly on the spot, and nearly unbalancing under the force of the block. Salazar gave her no time to stop, firing another spell almost instantly.

"Come on!" he shouted. "You're not in the classroom anymore! Some attack would be good - stop blocking!"

"Stupefy!" Hermione yelled, flicking her wand, but it was rebounded instantly, forcing her to perform the shield spell yet again.

"Is that all? You're in your fourth year!" Salazar returned, jets of light flying out of his wand. "Some curses please!" Hermione snapped.

"_Crucio_!" she screamed. The spell hit Salazar squarely in the chest and he dropped to the floor, twisting and convulsing but not yelling. Hermione was starting to feel sick. "No!" she yelled, going into a panic Ron would've been proud of. "Stop, stop, stop!" she flicked her wand and Salazar lay still, panting heavily. Hermione watched him for a moment, unable to move. "Are... are you alright?"she quivered.

"Fine." Salazar said, roughly. "That was... that was good." he sat up, Hermione staring, nervously.

"Good? Good?!" she asked. "I just used an _Unforgivable_..."

"Is that what they're called now?" Salazar barked. "And which pompus git came up with that idea?" he clicked his neck twice. "The thing is... with those _Unforgivable_ curses, you've really got to mean them if you want the to do any real damage." Hermione blushed. Being told you wanted to hurt someone wasn't usually a nice thing to hear. "Maybe a break." Salazar suggested. "Fetch me that jug will you?" Hermione did, shoving her wand back up her sleeve as she went. She looked, doubtfully into the empty jug, but passed it to Salazar anyway. He pointed his wand at it. "_Argumenti_." he whispered. Hermione's eyes widened as water appeared, swirling around inside the jug. Salazar didn't seem amazed by it, tipping it back and guzzling down large quantaties of the liquid. He saw Hermione looking gob-smacked and stopped. "Water charm, he explained. A bit advanced for you I should think." he held the jug out. "You want some?"

"No thankyou." Hermione squeaked.

"You still don't trust me." Salazar said. Hermione opened her mouth to protest but Salazar's eyebrows raised, as if they were challenging her. She closed it again.

"No." she admitted. "No, I don't, it's just. Pardon me, but why didn't you think muggle-borns weren't worthy to practice magic?" she gabbled quickly. Salazar sighed.

"I didn't think you had... _strong_ enough... well anything. I didn't think that muggles could cope."

"Cope? Cope?!" Hermione's voice grew louder as it grew more indignant. "Who are you to say if we could or couldn't _cope_! The other founder's were right, you _are_ horrible!"

"Spoken like a true Gryffindor." Salazar snapped, downing the rest of the water before flinging the jug into a corner where it smashed. Hermione flinched, looking down at her hands. "You don't know... you don't know the half of it..." he trailed off. Hermione waited, silently, not looking at him. "When I was a younger wizard than I am now, elegant, charming, handsome," Hermione supressed a giggle. "I was walking outside Hogwarts - Godric and I had had a _particulary_ nasty row and I was 'In a mood' as Rowena would say. Anyway, I came to a muggle town and that's when I saw... the most beautiful woman in the world. A muggle. I was besotted and... well, we ended up having a son together." Salazar paused for a moment before shaking his head. "I tried. I tried so hard to teach her magic; she was an excellent potion brewer. But, one day when trying to perform a summoning charm, something went wrong. Her wand, her wand backfired and set the room on fire. Set _her_ on fire." Hermione felt tears welling up in her eyes, but blinked them back, Salazar wasn't crying. He looked lost to the world, his eyes glazed over. "I was grief-stricken. Couldn't look after my son. Helga, dearest Helga made arrangements for him to live with relatives, I couldn't bare to look at him anymore."

"I'm sorry." Hermione said, quietly. Salazar looked at her.

"Don't be. I've spent the large majority of my life being sorry, and it never did me any good."

"How old was your son?" Hermione tried.

"Four." Salazar shrugged. "Or five, I can't remember that well and of course Helga was sympathetic, Rowena maybe a little less." Hermione pressed her lips together. She could tell this was neither the time or the the place to ask about Godric Gryffindor.

**And on that happy note, so concludes Chapter 11! And seeing as school is starting soon and I still have MASSES of work to do, here's a preview of Chapter 12...**

**Oh! Thanku to everyone who reviewed and feel free to tell me what you think or if you have any suggestions!**

**Anyway, preview!**

Hermione walked slowly down the corridor, deep in thought, her footsteps echoing on the stone floor of the passage way. She stopped, as there was, suddenly, another set of footsteps. Not the usualy slap of the feet of busy servants, hurrying around doing their work but the quiet pat, of someone trying to tread really quietly. Almost not be noticed. Hermione gripped the smooth wood of her wand for comfort, listening intently. The footsteps stopped. She couldn't just stand there - she'd be dead before she knew what hit her. She took a deep, bracing breath and turned. A man in ragged clothes stood at the other end of the hallway, looking at her, intently. Hermione shifted on her feet uncomfortably as she noticed that he was clutching something long, twisted and black but still recognisable as a wand. The wizard raised it over his head. Hermione opened her mouth but her throat seemed to be dried up. She could only stand there and watch in horrified silence as the wizard raised his wand:

"Avada Kedavra!" 


	12. My Immortal

**Voila! How evil am I? I tell you I was stuck on this one, literally sitting in the park and pulling petals off daisies going, **_**shall she or shan't she**_**. I tell you, I got such random looks, but hey! Here it is and I hope I made the right choice! Thanx to everyone who reviewed ( I LOVE YOU ALL! ) and on with chapter 12!**

Chapter 12: My Immortal

Hermione walked slowly down the corridor, deep in thought, her footsteps echoing on the stone floor of the passage way. She stopped, as there was, suddenly, another set of footsteps. Not the usualy slap of the feet of busy servants, hurrying around doing their work but the quiet pat, of someone trying to tread really quietly. Almost not be noticed. Hermione gripped the smooth wood of her wand for comfort, listening intently. The footsteps stopped. She couldn't just stand there - she'd be dead before she knew what hit her. She took a deep, bracing breath and turned. A man in ragged clothes stood at the other end of the hallway, looking at her, intently. Hermione shifted on her feet uncomfortably as she noticed that he was clutching something long, twisted and black but still recognisable as a wand. The wizard raised it over his head. Hermione opened her mouth but her throat seemed to be dried up. She could only stand there and watch in horrified silence as the wizard raised his wand:

"Avada Kedavra!" Hermione saw the jet of green light speed towards her, closed her eyes... when she was suddenly flung back against the wall, the curse singing the tips of her hair as it passed her and hit the wall. Salazar was standing behind the other wizard, his wand drawn and with a face like thunder. Hermione scrambled to her feet, drawing her own wand.

"No Hermione! Stay down!" Salazar bellowed at her, with such teacherly authority that Hermione instinctivly obeyed. The wand wizard spun around to meet the Slytherin, grinning.

"Avada Kedavra!" Salazar yelled, immediately. The man fell as the light struck him squarely in the chest , his snide grin still fixed on his face. His death grin. Hermione crept forwards. Salazar leant against the wall, seemingly exhausted with all the empowering rage he had displayed seconds before.

"Is he... dead?" Hermione asked, uncertainly. Salazar snorted.

"You see someone else get shot with a curse like that girl and then tell me if he's dead or not." Hermione wasn't so sure. She'd seen all the laws of magic that she'd carefully learnt, be shattered one by one and she wasn't going to take any chances. Something on the wizard's head caught her attention. Using the tip of her wand, she carefully brushed the hairs of his greasy fringe aside to reveal a triangular shape. She could almost feel Salazar's confusion and wariness radiating from his eyes and boring into her. She brushed the shape, lightly with her fingers - then it happened. Something black poured out of the deceased wizard's mouth, knocking Hermione backwards as it spiraled upwards and then flew as one out the open window. Hermione sat up, feeling blood drip down the side of her face where the thing had scraped her. Salazar knelt down beside her, gently but firmly forcing her chin up to examine the cut. "Well, do you have a white-lighter or don't you?" he said, suddenly. "Call her!"

"Rosie." Hermione said, feeling foolish. "Rosie?" there was a jangle and a flourish of white-lights as Rosie materialised in front of her.

"Someone rang?" she asked.

"Hermione's been hurt." Salazar said, in an emotionless tone. "She was attacked a few moments ago."

"What?!" Rosie demanded, immediately falling to her knees and pressing her hand to Hermione's cheek. Hermione felt all her nerves tingling as they reattatched and smoothed over. "I can't believe this!" Rosie growled, staring up at Salazar like it was his fault. "How could this happen."

"Wrong question, my dear lady. Don't you mean, _who made_ this happen?" Salazar asked, before turning on his heel and striding back down the hall. 

(**AN: Seeing as has a grudge against my stars I will simply write instead!)**

((Piper Halliwell was here!))

"SHE'S ALIVE!" Nanus screamed, striding into the Underworld. "VECTOR! VECTOR GET DOWN HERE YOU DAMN PIECE OF UNDERWORLD FLITH!"

"Is there a problem?" Vector asked, mildly, blinking into view.

"Problem? PROBLEM!" Nanus roared, hurling an energy ball at him. Vector only nearly managed to duck out of the way and the energy ball hit the wall instead, leaving a scorch mark. "THE WITCH IS STILL ALIVE AND YOU'RE ASKING WHAT THE PROBLEM IS?!"

"My lord, there is not one problem here that cannot be solved." Vector said carefully, getting up and brushing his robes down. "Pause for one moment. There are reasons she survives: the wand wizard, the white-lighter and the one she brought with her."

"Alright! So we kill the white-lighter and the wand wizard!" Nanus bellowed. The other demons in the cavern roared their approval.

"My liege," Vector broke in swiftly. "It might be unadvised to kill the white-lighter."

"Oh?" Nanus demanded, an energy ball forming in his hand. "And what might that be?"

"The white-lighter is guardian to another witch and all three of them make the Charmed Ones. If she gets killed the elders will assign another one. No, I think going for the wand wizard might be more wise. Maybe... even killing another obstruction with one stone." Vector said, smoothly. Nanus stared at him for a moment before nodding, the energy ball fizzing out in his hands.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked. "What d'you get out of it?" Vector shrugged.

"A better understanding of how the world works."

((Piper Halliwell was here!))

Piper Halliwell was stretched out in the sun, watching the Knights do their training. It was quite relaxing, with the sun countered by the cool breeze and the baby FOR ONCE staying still. All she had to do was clap whenever a fight finished and the Knights were quite happy to let her stay. Piper lay back and closed her eyes.

"Piper..." Piper shot up. "Piper..."

"Prue?" Piper asked, looking all around her.

"Piper... Piper..."

"Piper!" Piper's neck clicked as she saw Hermione come running across the grass towards her, neatly skirting Galahad and Bors. "There you are, I've been looking everywhere!" Hermione flopped on the grass beside her.

"Hey, kiddo, how was school?" Piper asked. Hermione shrugged.

"I'm not entirely sure. But on my way back, I was attacked -"

"What?!" Piper only almost managed to contain her surprise. "Attacked?" she hissed. "By whom?"

"This wizard, don't worry Salazar took care of him," Hermione put in hurriedly. "But when he died there was this sort of mark on his forehead, and all this black smoke came out of his mouth." Piper frowned.

"Show me." Hermione looked stumped, before screwing her eyes up and staring pointedly at some broken twigs by an old tree. They came sliding towards her, jerkily as if they were doing some insane dance before arranging themselves in a form that bore a definate resemblence of the tattoo on the wizard's head. "Impressive." Piper said. "You've been practising."

"It's easier with the hands." Hermione admitted, blinking rapidly for a few moments. "But then again, it's easier when I don't have to think about it." Piper nodded and resisting to tell Hermione the time she'd gone around with oven mittens on her hands because she kept blowing things up, looked at the pattern. "It's a Guardian." she decided.

"A guardian?"

"Spirits that are assigned to evil beings, mortals usually. As a sort of... extra protection." Piper explained.

"Who assigns them?"

"Upper-level demons mostly." Piper shrugged. "It's not them we need worry about. So, Salazar killed the wizard it was possesing?" Hermione nodded. "That's alright then. I'm sorry Hermione," she continued. "When you are as powerful as this, demon attacks are an everyday occurance -" Piper broke off as a sword seemed to appear out of nowhere and catch Piper, directly in the chest. She fell backwards and Hermione screamed, loudly.

"Piper! No, what's happened?"

"Hermione..." Piper choked, grabbing her hand. "Pull out the sword."

"What?"

"Just do it!" Hermione obeyed, not wanting to touch the handle, but using her telekenesis to get the weapon out. Piper began coughing and spluttering and rolled over onto one side.

"Hermione!" Hermione looked up to see Arthur and the knights skidding to a halt next to her, having been drawn by her screams. "Hermione, are you alright?" Hermione looked down at Piper who was muttering words under her breath.

"The sword, it just came from nowhere!" Hermione said. "It hit Piper -" Hermione broke off as Piper rolled back over. No blood, no gaping wound, no tears in the clothing.

"Piper, are you alright?" Arthur asked her.

"I think so." she replied, sitting up. "Boy, I must've been knocked out."

"Did you see who threw the sword?" Lancelot interjected. Piper shook her head.

"Not until it was an inch away from my face. Did you see anything Hermione?"

"No." Hermione squeaked. "Not a thing." The Knights looked from one to the other, confused.

"Milady." Arthur lowered his voice, looking directly at Piper. "Whoever's doing this wants you both dead. Can you tell us why?"

"I dunno." Piper shrugged. "Maybe we're just special."

((Piper Halliwell was here))

"Mistress! Mistress!" Hermione groaned and opened one bleery eye. It was late and she was tired.

"What is it Mehitabel?" she yawned, closing her eyes again. The House elf shook her violently.

"Mistress Bright-Lights sent me to warn you!" It persisted. "Murderous blackness in these hallways there had been!" Hermione's eyes shot open and stared at Mehitabel, eyes nearly as wide as hers.

"Mehitabel, who is it? Who's been murdered?"

"The man with a cross."

"The Bishop." Hermione realised, throwing back the covers.

"No Mistress!" Mehitabel squeaked, throwing herslef around Hermione's legs.

"Mehitabel, no! Listen to me!" Hermione said, desperately pulling a shawl around her shoulders. "Go and wake Piper okay? Tell her I'll meet her in the tavern." The House-elf continued to whimper. "Go!" Hermione cried. Mehitabel jumped, gave her a reproachful look and disappeared. Hermione, trying to push the mental image of Ron's awestruck face aside, hurried out into the corridor, down the stairs and into the cool night air. The tavern was empty, dimly lit by some smouldering ashes of the once great fire in the middle of it all. It was cold. Hermione wrapped her shawl tighter around her and perched on the edge of a bench, waiting for Piper. Voices in the dark made Hermione look up. They seemed to be coming from the other end of the tavern and she stood up.

"Get down!" Hermione heard the voice in her ear and before she knew it, she was being hauled into the shadows of the bar. Hermione began to panic, a scream threatening it's presence in her throat, but before she could, the person holding her shook her once and indicated to the middle of the tavern. The voices were getting louder and louder but still their source couldn't be seen. Until suddenly Salazar stumbled out of the blackness, closely followed by about ten Roman soldiers, all heavily armed.

"Why, this is absurd!" he cried, angrily. "I never even knew the Bishop!"

"Sorry sir, evidence points to all facts that you are." The lead Roman said.

"What evidence?" Salazar scoffed, icily. "You lot wouldn't know a good piece of evidence if it hit you in the face and slept with your wife!" The lead Roman flushed, and muttered something in reply but was cut off by Nanus pushing his way through the other soldiers.

"This evidence!" He said, coldly, producing a dagger from inside his robe. "This is your dagger isn't it?"

"No." Salazar answered bluntly.

"You mean to say you've never seen this dagger before?" Nanus demanded, toying with it.

"Yes, I've seen it. I know what it is and where it comes from. As do we both." he added quietly. "But it's not mine!"

"Silence!" Nanus hissed. "You murdered the Bishop, goodness knows how long you've been plotting it! Why did you come here in the first place? And don't tell me, it's because of your sister!"

"You're right." Salazar said, mildly. "It's not. And you won't be able to touch her or her baby anyway. My niece either."

"Oh really?" Nanus said, quietly. "And what makes you think I have to touch them?" Hermione shivered.

"I've faced worse things than you." Salazar replied, so quiet that Hermione had to strain to hear.

"I doubt it." Nanus shook his head before proclaiming in a loud voice, (and making all the soldiers around him jump) "Any last words before you face a fate worse than death?" Salazar raised his eyebrows and turned away. He stopped, looking directly at the place where Hermione was concealed, but instead of looking at Hermione, he looked at the person behind him, nodding slightly. And in the shadows, Hermione saw the distinct outline of the person nodding back.

"Just one." Salazar continued, a smirk on his lips now, still facing them. "Dragons."

"Dragons?" one of the soldiers asked.

"Yes, Dragons." Salazar finally caught Hermione's eye and winked briefly. Hermione frowned. "And -" Salazar broke off and Hermione screamed. Sticking out of his stomach, Hermione could see the cold glint of the dagger's blade. It withdrew and Salazar, for a split second his expression one of mingled shock and bemusement, crumpled, revealing the dwarf behind him, his blade and the arm and hand holding it bright scarlet.

"Well, well, well," the Dwarf said, smiling evilly at Hermione. "What do we have here?"

**End of Chapter 12. Sorry about that. Someone had to go - this is a brutal time people. Just because they're magic doesn't mean they'll live (But it didn't stop me hitting myself at the end of it!) Still, I hope this puts another perspective on Salazar Slytherin. Pause**

**On a slightly brighter side AHA! DRAGONS! I've been dying to put them in! And ANOTHER mysterious figure! Any guesses who?!**

**Reviews are all welcome!**

**:) Love!**


	13. Interlude, part 1

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! EEK! Okay, I am SO SORRY about Slytherin! I MISS HIM ALREADY! Strange how attatched you get (even though he's not my character! *dammit*) but anyway. I hope that put a new light on him. Sorry about the break by the way, I've been re-reading Harry Potter to try and get the character of Hermione more precise!:( Anyway, chapter thirteen! S**

Chapter 13: Interlude, part 1

Hermione screamed as she was dragged from her hiding place, her fingers scrabbling at her captor's hold on her face, cutting off her air. She twisted back to where the other person had been but he/she had disappeared. Nanus yanked her to her feet, still holding her face.

"Hello witch!" he hissed at her, his eyes turning black. Hermione began to struggle, violently out of pure fear and was on the verge of tears.

"Put her DOWN, Nanus!" the voice rang out loudly across the tavern, full of authority, making all the soldiers shrink slightly as Arthur, Piper and the other Knights appeared, dressed in very simple shirts and trousers but still brandishing weapons. Hermione pulled free and ran to Piper, who caught her. Nanus glared at Arthur but didn't dare do anything.

"Piper, Salazar..." Hermione choked out between sobs. "He's... he's...." Hermione kept stopping, the real truth of it, too hard to bear. Arthur stepped forward, his sword still on Nanus and closely flanked by Lancelot, to examine the crumpled body on the floor. "He's dead!" The words came out with a fresh burst of tears and Piper kept her close, rocking her gently. Arthur looked at the two women sadly, and Piper sent distress signals to him with her eyes. The tavern was quiet, the only sound being the long drawn sobs from Hermione.

"You." Arthur addressed Nanus, deadly quiet. "What was your excuse for killing this man?"

"He murdered the Bishop." Nanus replied, cooly. "It was my sacriligeous duty -"

"On what grounds?" Arthur cut across him. Nanus stayed silent. "You'd better answer me Nanus, because I am in no mood for your excuses. I am woken in the night by a distressed friend and come down to see that you've murdered her brother and are mis-treating her niece, now tell me Nanus, you didn't do all this on the grounds of a hunch." The other soldiers were looking uncomfortable but Nanus merely looked unimpressed.

"My reasons were my own and the authority is not mine for the evidence to be revealed." he answered, silkily. "Besides, what was he to you Commandor? He's a stranger from the middle of nowhere. The brother of a friend maybe but where do the ladies themselves come from?"

"Sir, I ask you to stand down." Arthur said to him, in a tone which clearly said he wasn't asking anything. "You would do better for it."

"Why?" Nanus challenged. "Just because you got familiar with two witches...."

"Witches?" Arthur asked, confused. Nanus seemed to turn a brief shade of red but swiftly caught himself.

"Wenches." he said instead, turning to Piper and Hermione with a hard look in his eye. "Common, tavern wenches."

"Why you -" Bors suddenly went forwards, Dagonet half-heartedly stopping him. The rest of the Knights were lookinq equally outraged.

"I warn you Bishop, I don't have complete control over my Knights so I would watch what you say." Arthur growled. Nanus stared at him equally for a moment, as if deciding whether to fry him or not, but eventually deciding against it.

"Fine." he whispered, silkily. "Commandor." he said, mock-bowing to Arthur. "Knights." he bowed again to the knights a sneer on his lips, before turning smartly to the other soldiers. "Away!" he commanded, shooing them with his hands. Arthur watched him go, his sword still pointed out. Hermione left Piper's embrace and moved next to him, carefully slipping her hand in his.

"We will figure it out!" Piper put in suddenly. "What you're planning! And believe me, when we do, you'll be sorry you were ever born." Nanus stopped, and turned to look at her, Lancelot instinctivly edging his way, further in front of Piper and gripping his swords tighter. But Nanus did not attack, he merely looked at her pleasantly.

"Milady, shouldn't you be resting? It's not healthy for you to be up so late with the little one on the way." Piper frowned and Nanus smiled at her and continued walking away. Hermione felt a tingle in her spine. As if someone was walking across her grave. She turned back to Piper who's frown had given way to an utter look of alarm. A small trickle of blood came slowly out of her nose and Piper brushed it away and looked at it, quizzically on her fingers.

"Piper you alright?" Hermione asked, warily. Piper was anything but alright, she suddenly doubled over, as if been punched in the stomach. When she withdrew her hand, it was glistening red. "Piper!" All the knights turned as well, in time to see Piper, collapse. "Piper!" Hermione yelled again.

"Hermione, stay back!" Lancelot advised, catching her by the wrist and pulling her, firmly but not roughly, a little way back. Hermione strained to see as Arthur and Dagonet were bent over Piper's body, blocking her from view.

"She's bleeding fast." Dagonet commented in a low voice. "We need to get her inside."

"Right." Arthur agreed. "Bors." Bors nodded and scooped Piper up before carrying her, not slowly towards the fort. "Hermione." Arthur began, softly, bending down. "Are you hurt?" Hermione shook her head, numbly. She was exhausted and would later attribute that to shock, but at the moment all she wanted to do was sleep. Arthur nodded, straightened up and spoke a few words to Lancelot, Hermione not taking a word of it in, barely even noticing being picked up and carried away.....

((Piper Halliwell was here))

Hermione woke the next morning, unaware of where she was. She certainly wasn't in the Gryffindor dorms - or her own bedroom at home for that matter. The room was square with big wooden beams running across the ceiling, and most of it was occupied with the big bed that she was now in, however, in the corner was a small cupboard for, presumably, clothes although it defied it's purpose somewhat by the messy clothes that had been flung on a chair close by. Hermione squinted. Was it her, or were there some very pointy swords on that chair?

"Good Morning, lass!" roared Bors, banging through the door with a tray and followed closely by Galahad, Gawain, Tristan and Lancelot. Hermione rolled her eyes as she remembered. "How are you this fine morning?"

"Tired." came the short reply, as she buried her head under her pillow.

"We brought breakfast." Bors continued, banging the tray down on a small table and making the contents jump a few feet in the air.

"By the Gods Bors, she wants it in one piece!" Gawain told him, exasperatedly. Hermione edged out from under the covers and squinted at them all.

"Where's the other two, erm.... Dagonet and Arthur?" she asked, struggling to keep concentration.

"What? Are we not enough for you?" Lancelot asked, jokingly. Hermione gave him a look that plainly said: '_Don't be so silly_'. "They're fine, they're just supervising Piper, that's all!"

"Pi -? Piper!" Hermione shot out of bed, only to be caught be Bors almost immediately. "Where is she? Is she alright? Is the baby ok? What was wrong with her -"

"Hermione calm down. We're sure Piper's fine." Galahad told her in a soothing voice, that Hermione found slightly patronising.

"We can do one better." boomed a large voice from the doorway that made Galahad jump. Dagonet stood, leaning against the frame and wiping his hands with Arthur just coming up behind him.

"She's resting in her room, yes she is fine, the baby is fine also and it was just something that can sometimes occur in pregnancies... is that all the questions answered?" he asked, smiling. Hermione nodded, before sinking back onto the bed in sheer relief before bolting upright again.

"Whose room is this?" she asked.

"Mine." A solitary voice spoke up. Hermione stared at Tristan, who was avoiding her gaze and eating an apple.

"Your room?" Hermione asked, suddenly feeling slightly awkward in the bed. The knights sensed this and roared with laughter.

"Dunnae worry ye self lass." Bors roared, slapping her on the back and making her lurch forward. "Tristan weren't sleeping here – in fact he RARELY sleeps here."

"Hence the reason she was put in here, I would be ashamed to let her sleep in any of your rooms!" Arthur put in, a slight shadow of a grin on his lips. He looked tired, very tired.

"Hey, my room is clean!" Lancelot objected.

"Yes, but we couldn't really run the risk of Hermione waking up to discover a naked bar maid in the room too, could we?" Gawain put in.

"A naked Lancelot too, most probably!" Galahad added, receiving a cuff around the head from Lancelot and making the knights laugh again and Hermione blush furiously.

"Could I possibly see Piper?" Hermione asked, trying to steer the subject far away from its present topic.

"You can, once you've eaten your breakfast." Arthur said, firmly.

"Why does she have to eat it?" whispered Lancelot.

"She doesn't but that's the only way she's going too."

**Sorry it's so short but I've been really busy lately! I will update soon!**

**Comments are lovely and constructive criticism is ALWAYS welcome.**

**X**


	14. Interlude, part 2

**Hello! :P Thank Heaven for Half-term holidays! So, I had nothing else to busy myself with and I thought I'd get this part over and done with! Thanx for Reading and Reviewing, it really makes me feel good inside! Enjoy X**

Chapter 14: Interlude, part 2

Piper was sitting up in bed when Hermione sped in, skidding on the rug slightly.

"Hey, easy kiddo!" Piper cautioned her as Hermione regained her balance and made her way to the edge of Piper's bed more carefully.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, sitting down gently.

"Fine! Better than ever! Believe me, if I could get up I would!" Piper said, looking at Vanora, pointedly.

"Don't give me that! It's Arthur's orders not mine!" Vanora told her, crushing something green and grass-looking into a bowl.

"Well, what the hell does he know about having a baby anyway?" Piper demanded.

"His orders." Vanora said simply, shrugging. Piper muttered something about where Arthur could stick his orders, but didn't say anything out loud.

"So, what are you planning to do today?" Piper turned to Hermione, suddenly. Hermione was stuck for a few minutes, fazed.

"Erm, I don't know." she admitted. "I was hoping to catch up on some of my studying -"

"Honey, please, one lesson we learned in High School was that if the teacher ain't well enough to teach, you aren't well enough to learn." Piper rebuked her. Hermione opened her mouth to protest the fact that she _loved_ learning, but Piper cut across her: "Why don't you go down and see what the Knights are doing?"

"Oh yeah, that's entertainment for the season - seeing great big useless excuses for men hit each other with swords!" Vanora snorted, wringing out a wet towel fiercly. Hermione looked at Piper, confused, who replied with a _Don't ask_ look. Suddenly Hermione had a sudden desire to be with the Knights - and away from Vanora's temper.

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked Piper, getting up off the bed. "I mean, would you rather I stayed -?"

"Don't be silly!" Piper flapped a hand at her. "Go on and get out. I'll be up by tommorrow." Hermione nodded, went to hug her, but stopped and squeezed her hand instead before leaving, skirting around Vanora as she did so.

((Piper Halliwell was here))

Lancelot lunged at the straw man with his right sword, embedding it into the straw chest before bringing up the left one and slicing it's head off. He pulled his other sword free before stabbing them both into the ground and stretching. Not that beating a straw man wasn't fufilling but he would rather have a bit of competition. Maybe he could persuade Arthur to import a few Woads......

"Lancelot!" Lancelot turned at the sound of his name to see Hermione coming across the grounds towards him. He grinned broadly. He liked the bushy-haired teenager - and this was the first time he'd liked someone and not tried to go to bed with them (he knew Arthur would kill him if he tried it on with Piper).

"Hermione! To what do I owe this pleasure, milady?" he asked, bowing at her. Hermione rolled her eyes at him.

"Don't be stupid Lancelot!" she told him, trying to be stern, but unable to carry through as the corners of her mouth twitched. "You here all by yourself?"

"Looks like it." Lancelot replied, picking up a sword and twirling it a few times between his fingers. He grinned at Hermione's awestruck expression and began to twirl the sword faster and in more complex motions.

"Okay, now you're just showing off." she told him.

"All the time." Lancelot replied, picking the other blade up and spinning that one too.

"Can you teach me?" Lancelot nearly dropped both blades in surprise and looked over at Hermione, who was looking back at him, perfectly serious.

"What?" Lancelot asked.

"Can you teach me?" Hermione repeated.

"Teach you? Why?" Lancelot stared at her like he was just seeing her for the first time. Hermione shrugged.

"Just think it would help to have at least _some_ sword-expertise. And you're a proper swordsman, a knight. Who else do I ask?" Lancelot opened and closed his mouth a few times before shaking his head as if too clear it and looking down at his own two swords.

"Hermione, I never _wanted_ to be a Knight, I never _wanted_ to serve Rome, to be here."

"Neither do I! I'm not asking to sign up you know, I'm just asking for one or two moves." she pressed him, folding her arms and pressing her lips together stubbornly. Lancelot opened his mouth to argue but closed it again. He knew when he was beaten.

"Fine." he stabbed both his swords back in the ground again and reached for a long wooden pole, propped up against a make-shift wall. He tossed it too her and she caught it with difficulty. "Ok, I'll go easy on you. Remember, I've been doing this for 15 years."

"And you don't look a day older." Hermione put in. Lancelot's grin widened as he reached for the other stick,

"Milady Hermione, I do believe you are flirting with me!" he said, almost triumphantly, causing Hermione to blush madly.

((Piper Halliwell was here))

About 2 hours later, Hermione limped into the tavern, stiff and sore. Despite Lancelot's promises of: '_going easy_', he had been anything but. Still, she'd picked up a few moves and successfully floored him twice (even though once was when he'd tripped over a tree root which had 'convieniantly' placed itself under his feet) which was something. However, Hermione had a feeling she wasn't going to be ready to wield Excalibur anytime _soon_.

"Hermione!" Galahad waved at her madly, motioning her over to where he, Gawain and Tristan were sitting, Gawain with a woman on his lap. Hermione limped towards them, trying to dodge all the big Roman soldiers.

"Good Gods, girl!" Gawain exclaimed, his convieniant use of alliteration only adding to the dramatic affect. "You look as if you've been through a war and a half!"

"I have!" Hermione muttered, lowering herself onto a seat next to Tristan. She felt two hands rest lightly on her soldiers.

"Sorry if I was too rough for you." she heard Lancelot's voice say, sounding anything but apologetic. She swatted randomly above her head in annoyance and heard Lancelot's laugh as he walked away. Galahad, Gawain and Tristan all stared at her, Gawain having forgotten the whore on his lap completely.

"What?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

"Hermione," Galahad began, haltingly. "This might be too late....... _but_..... I think it's..... only fair..... to...erm... _warn _you of..... the erm dangers...... of... sleeping with...... older... men." Hermione looked at him, confused.

"What Galahad means, Hermione," Tristan took over. "Is; did you and Lancelot......?"

"Did Lancelot and I what?" Hermione asked, frowning.

"Er, Gawain. You go on." Tristan said quickly, taking a bite from his apple.

"Eermman phaunam mumna." was all Gawain could come out with.

"Yes, well. Thankyou Gawain for those words of wisdom!" Galahad said, sarcasticslly. "You've been a great help."

"Did you and Lancelot sleep together?" Tristan asked, suddenly. Hermione's eyebrows rocketed into her bushy hair. The woman on Gawain's lap began to tug on his hair, trying to pull his face towards hers, but Gawain didn't even move, eyes fixated on Hermione.

"What?" Hermione demanded, slowly. "Please tell me you don't actually think I _slept with_....." she trailed off in disbelief. "No." she said firmly. "Absolutely not."

"Then, what were you doing?" Galahad asked, cautiously, looking at Hermione as if she might suddenly hit him.

"He was teaching me how to fight like you. Show me a few moves to defend myself." She answered, coldly, rotating her shoulder. "For goodness sake, he's old enough to be my _father_!" she hissed at them, venemously. Galahad flinched and quickly took a gulp of ale, Tristan nodded approvingly and Gawain only just realised that the woman on his lap had stalked off across the tavern.

"Ladies!" Bors roared suddenly, staggering over towards them and slapping Galahad so violently on the back the he spat beer the full length of the table."How's life?" Gawain, Hermione and Tristan exchanged looks as Bors picked up Galahad's tanker and drained it in one gulp. Dagonet came up behind him, looking exasperated and a bit embarrased.

"Bors! I think you've had enough!" he said, firmly, taking yet another tanker away from Bor's mouth.

"Never enough!" Bors reproached him, his blood shot eyes struggling to focus. "Especially... hic!.... tonight!"

"Why, what's so special about tonight?" Hermione asked.

"Well, tonight, my dear sweet Hermione marks the end of our fifteen years servitude to the Romans!" Galahad told her, grinning broadly.

"Oh! So - does that mean....?"

"Tommorrow, we have our _final_ mission before it's home!" Gawain filled in, his own grin lost in his beard.

"Well, that's.... that's really good!" Hermione tried to sound pleased. "Well done."

"Well done?" Gawain asked, bemused. "There's nothing to praise us about!"

"Well, unless you want to count Bors's 101 children...." Galahad tailed off as Dagonet shook his head violently, signalling him to stop. But Bors wasn't listening, preoccupied with eyeing another tanker like a cat eyeing a mouse.

"So, will you be leaving then?" Hermione asked.

"As soon as we can!" Gawain affirmed, joyously, not noticing Hermione's face falling slightly. The others did though and immediately became solemn (except from Bors, who was still eyeing the tankard).

"You know, you can come too Hermione." Galahad offered.

"Oh, well... I don't know."

"Come on Hermione! You can't tell me, you _want_ to stay here!" Gawain persisted.

"It's really not up to me, it's up to my aunt!" Hermione protested.

"She can come too!" Galahad declared. "The more the merrier!"

"Yes, but...." Hermione trailed off, biting her lip.

"We won't leave here until you feel safe." Tristan said, quietly. Hermione jumped and looked at him, incrediously, but he had gone back to carving his apple and not looking at anyone.

"Of course we won't." Dagonet boomed in agreement.

"Yeah," Galahad nodded, firmly, though he didn't look all too pleased with the idea. "_Or_ until we convince them to come!"

"Bors, no!" Dagonet yelled suddenly as Bors made a lunge for the other tankard, grabbing him by the shoulder. "I think it's time we left." though clearly, Dagonet wasn't giving him the option and Bors allowed himself to be led away, taking one last mournful look at the tankard.

"Hey Dag!" Gawain yelled. "Why is he -?" he asked, lowering his voice and making gestures with his hands.

"Vanora." Dag mouthed, before leaving the tavern.

"Well, that explains a lot." Galahad muttered.

((Piper Halliwell was here))

In her body, Piper tossed and turned in her sleep, but in her mind she was back in the white place she'd been before.

"Hello?" she called. "Anyone there?" he voice didn't echo but sounded painfully sharp and loud in the silence. She whirled around suddenly to come face to face with the strange robed figure. "Who are you?" she asked. "What do you want?" The figure merely stood still, looking at her. Piper's nerves were beginning to jangle loudly and she was just about ready to attempt blowing it up when the figure slowly raised it's hands up to it's hood and lowered it. Piper gasped.

"Prue?"

**Mwahahaha! Mwahaha - ack! *chokes on bug* Urck - anyway! Back at school next week so I might not be able to update for a little while! But I will try very hard to get it all done! **


	15. Bad Baby!

**OMSL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING SOONER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is actually terrible of me!!!!!!!!!! ACK! *dies* **

**But here it is anyway! SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Enjoy**

**X**

Chapter 15: _Bad_ Baby!

Piper watched the Knights leave from her bedroom window. _Their final mission_. Piper attempted a smile at the thought, but she couldn't deny it - she was going to miss the big louts. As if hearing her thoughts, Arthur turned his head back and, for a very brief moment caught her eye. Piper's breath caught in her throat as she quickly spun away from the window. '_Don't be so ridiculous_!' she told herself. '_You've got a husband at home _-'

"Piper!" Hermione burst into the room, her cheeks red from the chilly air outside and her hair wild (or even more wild) from the wind. She stopped. "Oh, I guess you're already up."

"Indeed I am!" Piper did a twirl. "How do I look? Like a woman who's going through her early twenties?"

"More like a woman who's going through her early pregnancy." Hermione countered. "Come on, Vanora and Rosie are downstairs and need help with the Numbers."

"What's happened?" Piper asked, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.

"Well, Seven stomped on Eight's foot and Five took Three's doll." Hermione said, tilting her head to the left as she tried to remember all the key facts.

"Wait, isn't Three a boy?" Piper said, suddenly very confused.

"I don't know, the point is; Bors and Vanora had another argument last night and Eleven kept her up all night - basically she's very pissed." Hermione finished, exasperatedly.

"Hermione!" Piper exclaimed, half-laughing, half-appauled to hear the well-spoken, good little witch use such foul language. Hermione shrugged, half-embarrased, half-pleased.

"Can we just go?" she asked, unable to think of anything else to say. "Before Vanora sends a Howler up?"

"A Howler?" Piper inquired, bemused. "What's that?"

"Well, it's this letter, usually red -" Hermione began, launching into the full textbook explanation as she and Piper left the room.

((Piper Halliwell was here))

The Dwarf breathed heavily as he surveyed the image in the Living Smoke; the two witches walking arm in arm, cheerfully, down a corridor and chatting happily.

"Why... aren't.... they.... DEAD YET?" he yelled, swiping his arm through the Living Smoke, causing it to dissapait before shimmering out.

((Piper Halliwell was here))

A loud roar made Piper turn.

"Get down!" she yelled, throwing herself sideways and pulling Hermione with her as an energy ball flew over their heads. Hermione scrambled to her feet, near dragging Piper up too.

"What was that?" she asked, looking around frantically.

"Er, I'm guessing him!" Piper said, panting slightly as a red faced person came charging round the corner.

"Nanus?!" Hermione asked, incrediously. "What -"

"Deduct later, run now!" Piper interrupted, grabbing her by the arm and running through an arch, the dwarf hot on their heels. For every door that Hermione slammed shut or forced open with a wave of the arm, the Dwarf just blast through them. For every vase Piper smashed or statue she shoved down behind them, they turned to ashes when the Dwarf ran by. Eventually, they were running out of doors to slam - and breath.

"Piper!" Hermione gasped. "I wasn't exactly in the elite athletics at Hogwarts!"

"Yeah, I know the feeling! But these extra pounds are suddenly taking their toll!" Piper wheezed in reply, nearly taking a door right off its hinges as she barraged through it - and straight into a wall. They'd both run into a very large cupboard.

"Piper!" Hermione cried, near hysterics as she beat at the wall. "What do we do, there's no more doors, what do we do?!"

"Alright, Hermione stop it! Stop it right now!" Piper told her, fiercely, grabbing her by the arms and shaking her slightly. "We're going to get out of this! We're going to get -" Piper's words were cut off as the Dwarf blasted the door into a few splinters and bore down on them, growling. "We might not get out of this." Piper rasped, pulling Hermione to her and crouching down in a corner.

"It ends!" the Dwarf declared, throwing a single energy ball towards them. Piper and Hermione shut their eyes - and suddenly a weird feeling came over them, like they were floating through mid-air. Piper opened her eyes. They were no longer huddled together on a stone floor about to be barbequed. Instead, they were on a large green field.

"Hermione. Hermione!" Piper said, prodding the younger witch in the back a few times.

"Are we dead?" Hermione said, her voice slightly muffled.

"Sorry to disappoint." Piper grinned. Hermione's head shot up and she stared at, not a stone wall, but open plains, she spun around, furiously searching for the demon.

"Aww, well done baby!" Piper cooed into her stomach. "Who's a clever little sea-monkey? You are!"

"Er, Piper!" Hermione said, shaking her shoulder. "You might want to look at this!"

"Look at what?" Piper demanded, spinning around also. She stopped. "Oh my!" They were both staring, not at more calm fields, but instead; fields swarming with Woads, Romans - and of course the Knights - all in heavy battle. "_Bad _baby!" Piper corrected as a severed head came flying through the air and landed at their feet. Hermione couldn't repress a short scream as the dead eyes of the severed head bore into her skull. A bad choice.

"Oh, great Hermione - now they're coming after us!" Piper said, back away.

"Well, I'm very sorry Piper!" Hermione huffed.

"Less apologies - more running! Go!" Piper cut across her, grabbing Hermione's arm and trying to pull her away. The Woads however, were very quick - well quicker than a pregnant woman and a teenager, both wearing long flowing dresses and soon caught up with them.

"Piper!" Hermione shrieked, as one raised his sword.

"Hey!" Piper yelled, turning to face the man and flicking her hands. The man froze. "I have had it with this time period!" Piper cursed, taking the sword out of the immobile Woad's hands and thrusting the handle into his face. Time came back as the Woad keeled over to the floor, knocked out and bleeding from the nose. "And stay down!" Piper said, chucking the sword on him.

"Piper, there's more!" Hermione called, indicating several more Woads running towards them.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Piper exclaimed, flicking her hands yet again. It was a mark of how pissed Piper was that the front three immediately blew into pieces. "Hermione, _some_ help would be appreciated!"

"Er, right!" Hermione nodded, reaching down for the sword that Piper had previously thrown down and heaved it up.. "Oh my!"

"What?" Piper demanded, freezing another Woad in mid-jump.

"This is exceedingly heavy!" Hermione replied, managing to swing the sword and clumsily block a blow from an attacker.

"Forget the damn sword! Are you a Witch or are you not a Witch?" Piper said, with much exasperation as she round-house kicked the elevated Woad and sent him flying into the river. Hermione rolled her eyes upon hearing Ron's words come out of Piper's mouth and half raised her other arm when the man knocked the sword out of her hands with his own sword and then elbowed her in the face, making Hermione stumble over. She struggled to sit up, the sunlight momentarily striking her in the face from behind the Woad and narrowed her eyes - and resulting in the Woad soaring back away from her. Hermione sat stunned for a moment.

"Incase you haven't noticed, there is a battle going on here!" Piper bellowed to her, bringing her out of the temporary comatose.

"Oh right! Sorry!" Hermione said, clambering to her feet and dusting herself down.

"Look out!" Piper's warning barely came in time as Hermione turned to be confronted with an axe and a mouthful of yellow teeth (and extremely bad breath). Hermione drew her arm to her chest - but the man suddenly lurched forward, Hermione only just diving out of the way in time. The woad fell, face first on the ground; the arrow sticking out of the back of his neck the apparent cause.

"Hermione! Hold up your arm!" Hermione obeyed, instinctivly and was suddenly hauled up and into a saddle by Galahad. "What the hell are you doing out here?" he asked; half-angry, half-amused.

"We... er, got lost." Hermione said, pathetically but Galahad didn't seem to be listening as he urged the horse back to the rest of the knights, dodging the retreating woads, occasionally giving the random one a kick. Hermione looked back over Galahad's shoulder, to where Piper was in the middle of beating some guy sick with his own scabbard. Piper looked up to see Hermione riding away with Galahad and sighed; '_Where's my bloody knight in shining armour_?' she thought as the woad suddenly grabbed hold of the scabard and in the blink of an eye had pulled himself up, twisting both of them around and now was attempting to strangle her with it.

"Need a hand?" Piper heard Lancelot's voice before she saw him and mentally eye-rolled; '_That's the last time I ever wish for anything_'.

"No thankyou." she choked, pushing the scabbard away from her neck and slipping out from underneath it and turning and kicking. The Woad landed a few feet away, cast a horrified glance at her before running off into the forest as fast as his legs would carry him. "YEA! KEEP RUNNING!" Piper yelled at his back. She turned to face Lancelot, who stood grinning at her, his twin swords crossed casually behind his neck. "What?"

"Nothing. Just never seen that fire in a woman before." Lancelot commented, putting his arm round Piper's shoulders for support.

"You've _obviously_ never been to Europe." Piper muttered.

((Piper Halliwell was here))

Hermione couldn't breathe. As soon as Galahad had reached the other knights, she'd been near-dragged out of the saddle and was now being smothered in Bors's arms.

"I'm fine! I'm fine!" Hermione assured him, patting him timidly on the back. Over his shoulder she could just about see Gawain, Tristan and Arthur, all looking at her with a mixture of worry, confusion and relief. Wait, where was Lancelot?

"Well, no need to make a big entrance!" Hermione tore herself out of Bors's arms at the sound of Piper's voice and ran over to where the brunette was hobbling, assisted by the curly haired knight.

"Piper, you're okay!" she said gleefully as she reached them.

"Yep, just about." Piper agreed, glancing down to the gash in her leg which just finished healing.

"I'm fine too." Lancelot put in. Hermione grinned at him too, genuinley happy that none of the knights had died - or themseleves for that matter. As if he'd read her thoughts, Lancelot smiled at her and ruffled her hair but immediatley became serious at the sight of Arthur striding across the field towards them. "Arthur,"

"Get on your horse, Lancelot." Arthur said, through tight lips. "Hermione, you okay?"

"Yes." Hermione answered, slightly wary of Arthur's facial expression. "I think so."

"Good. Go with Lancelot." Arthur told her, giving her the faintest shadow of a smile before moving on to Piper. Lancelot paused, waiting for Hermione to catch up with him before going to get his horse, Hermione looking over her shoulder, worriedly as she went.

"Are you hurt?" Arthur asked Piper.

"No, I'm fine, Arthur, what -" Piper began but Arthur took her firmly by the elbow and began to pull her along.

"You see that man over there?" he asked, quickly. "The one just dismounting from his horse. His name is Germanus. _Bishop_ Germanus. He's here to present us our freedom."

"Freedom? What, like from slavery.....?"

"From slavery, from Rome, from 15 years of fighting for a cause that isn't there."

"A perfect yes would've been fine." Piper muttered, quite annoyed at how she was being handled. Arthur stopped and looked at her, his face inches from her.

"Ever since the events with the last Bishop there have been whispers about you." he told her fiercely.

"What kind of whispers?" Piper asked, feeling goosebumps break out over her skin.

"The bad kind. Please Piper, be careful. Only speak with him when he speaks with you, only do something if he tells you to - and _no_ arguing." Arthur added.

"Arthur, I'm pregnant and I tell you now that somethings he could ask me to do, I will most certainly object to!" Piper hissed. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"He's a _Bishop_." he replied, as if that was an answer. "And everyone at the Wall will follow him. He's a dangerous man." Piper nodded.

"I understand." she replied. Arthur nodded too, smiled at her weakly and squeezed her shoulder. Piper felt butterflies in her stomach - which she immediately wished she could blow up.

"You're one of the strangest women I have ever met Piper." he told her, before turning away and walking briskly towards the remaining Romans and his knights.

"Yeah and you love it!" Piper called to his back. She couldn't see him grin broadly.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

**So, that's another chapter done. Sorry, it's rather rushed - I wanted to get it uploaded ASAP.**

**And do I sense some Piper/Arthur? I think I do. That's wierd as I never planned that! **

**:D**

**Anyway, next time will be a lot quicker! PROMISE! (It could hardly be any **_**longer**_**!)**


	16. Hermione Makes A Friend

**See! I told you the next update wouldn't be too long! Mwahahaha! So, I gather that some of you are worried about the whole Piper/Arthur thing. Well, I did say that Piper was going to stay faithful to Leo, so she will - BUT that doesn't mean that I can't have fun with the potential! Anyway, ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

Chapter 16: Hermione makes a friend

"And if you ever, EVER do something like that EVER again, I will have to tie you up!" Bors finished. "_Ever_!"

"Bors, I'm 29 years old, okay? I'm not a child!" Piper said, irritably from where she was seated on Lancelot's horse."I don't know why you're laughing, Hermione!" she added to the giggling teenager.

"Sorry." Hermione replied, covering her mouth with her hands but still with the occasional spluttering noise slipping through. Piper rolled her eyes. Arthur and the Roman Centurion - who apparently wasn't a Centurion but in fact a Bishop - who had been talking a short distance away were now coming over.

"And these are the Great Sarmation Knights I have heard so much about in Rome?" the Bishop Germanus asked, although it was clearly not a question. His eyes fell upon Piper and Hermione. "These two however, I have heard not so much about, Arthur?"

"This is the Lady Piper and her niece, the Lady Hermione - they are staying with us while Lady Piper's... husband, is missing with a Legion." Arthur explained.

"Ah, well whatever God wills, but why are they exposed on such a bloody battlefield in this way?" Germanus looked at Arthur, frowning slightly. Arthur, who found he had no actual reply, turned to Piper.

"We were picking flowers." she said, dryly and Lancelot snorted violently.

"Here?" Germanus sounded incredulous and bemused.

"Well, we couldn't exactly foresee that we were going to be attacked!" Piper snapped, ignoring Arthur's glare. Germanus let out a rough bark of laughter.

"Spirit. Very uncommon in a woman. But she has a point," Germanus turned to the knights. "I thought the Woads controlled the North of Hadrians Wall."

"They do, but they occasionally venture south and Rome's anticipated withdrawal has only increased their daring." Arthur answered for them, ignoring Piper's pointed look.

"Who leads them?"

"He's called Merlin, a dark magician some say." Lancelot drawled, casually. Hermione gave a little squeak and nearly fell straight out of the saddle, Galahad having to lunge sideways in order to catch her.

"Something wrong, Hermione?" Piper asked, mildly.

"No! No, nothing at all!" Hermione replied, her voice going high and shrilly, as it always did when she got upset.

"Forgive her, she's always like that." Piper said to Garmanus, smiling sweetly.

"It's my job, my child." Germanus smiled back at her, bemused. Arthur let out a thankful breath.

"The wall, Hadrian's wall, right?" Hermione asked. Germanus looked at her.

"What other wall could it be?" he inquired.

"Well, it's just that - I've always had a fascination with the architecture and skill used in building it...." Hermione tailed off, uncertainly. "What?" she asked, blushing, noticing the looks she was getting from Piper and the knights. "I do."

"An intelligent woman!" the Bishop exclaimed, grinning wildly. "I have not encountered one of those since Rome! Come, my child. You shall ride with me and I shall tell you all about the architecture!" Hermione looked at Piper uncertainly.

"Er, Bishop. I think she'd rather stay where she was. Between you and me, she's not all that graceful getting off and on a horse." Piper said quickly, not telling an entire lie.

"Nonsense! I'm sure the Knight will provide assistance." Germanus replied, dismounting himself and looking at Galahad expectantly. Galahad glared daggers as he grabbed Hermione's waist and hoisted her off the saddle and onto the ground. Hermione, feeling extremely uncomfortable, walked over to the Bishop's carriage and climbed in. Arthur gave her an encouraging smile, ignoring Piper's furious eye-signals, which Hermione reciprocated, nervously.

"Don't worry, we'll protect you." he said, more to Hermione than Germanus.

"Oh, I have no doubt Commander, no doubt." Germanus grinned. "FORWARD!"

"Arthur!" Piper hissed at him as the whole procession began to turn towards the Wall. "What the Hell -"

"Not now Piper." Arthur said sharply, turning and riding away. Piper bit her tongue and made an exasperated noise.

"Bloody ROMANS!" she yelled at his back.

"Feel better?" Lancelot asked, bemused.

"Watch it, pretty boy." Piper warned him as he too turned the horse to follow the procession.

(Piper Halliwell Was Here)

"I don't like him. The Roman." Galahad commented, grumpily. "If he's here to discharged us why doesn't he just give us our papers?"

"Is this your happy face?" Gawain asked. "Galahad, do you still not know the Romans, they won't scratch their arses without holding a ceremony."

"Well, I'm not too happy about Hermione being in his carriage." Gawain said, darkly.

"She's a sensible lass, and that Bishop knows if he tries anything, Arthur will have his head." Bors pointed out. "Look, why don't you just kill him? And then discharged yourself later?"

"I don't kill for pleasure." Galahad spat. "Unlike some." He added pointedly, as Tristan rode up beside them.

"You should try it someday, you might get a taste for it." Was the reply, before he rode on ahead.

"The first thing I'm going to do, is find a beautiful Sarmation woman to wed." Gawain said.

"A beautiful Sarmation woman? Why do you think we left in the first place?" Bors asked, before making a noise that was uncannily similar to a cow.

"And what will you do Lancelot when you return home?" Gawain asked, as Lancelot pulled his horse up beside him, a still fuming Piper sitting in front of him.

"Well, if this woman of Gawain's is as beautiful as Gawain's. I hope to be spending a lot of time at Gawain's house. His wife will welcome to the company!" Lancelot replied.

"I see and what will I be doing?" Gawain asked, suspiciously.

"Wondering at your good fortune that all your children look like me." Lancelot grinned, riding quickly ahead while Gawain muttered something at his back and Bors guffawed with laughter. "And you Arthur? Will you go back to Rome?" Lancelot asked, pulling up next to the Commander. Arthur smiled.

"It's a beautiful place Rome. Ordered, civilised. Advanced."

"A breeding ground of arrogant fools?" Lancelot cut in.

"The greatest minds come together in one sacred place." Arthur continued. "You should come visit me. You too Lady Piper." he added to the brunette.

"Hmpf." Piper said. Arthur looked at Lancelot, confused. Lancelot grinned and shrugged.

"What about you Lady Piper? What do you plan to do when you leave?" he asked Piper.

"Well, giving birth seems to be number one of my priorities..." suddenly she shot up. "Oh no! What if I give birth here?! I can't give birth here!"

"Why not?" Arthur asked, confused. "Vanora has!" Piper glared at him.

"I NEED HOSPITALS! AND DOCTORS! AND CLEAN SHEETS! AND DRUGS! I NEED A LOT OF DRUGS!" she yelled.

"We have the physician." Arthur said, looking slightly alarmed at Piper's outburst. "And nice beds. And -"

"EPIDURALS!" Piper bawled. "AND GAS! A HELL OF A LOT OF GAS! AS IN I WANT TO BREATHE JUST GAS!"

"Suddenly having a wife isn't such an attractive proposal as it once seemed." Lancelot muttered.

(Piper Halliwell was here)

Harry and Ron knocked on Dumbledore's door.

"Come in."

"Sir, what's happened?" Harry asked, upon entry.

"Whatever it is, its Malfoy's fault!" Ron added. "That slimy git..." Dumbledore held up his hand and both boys fell silent.

"I would like to introduce you to Phoebe and Paige Halliwell." he said, waving over to two women sitting in the chair before is desk. "They're Piper's sisters."

"Hello." Harry and Ron muttered, awkwardly.

"And Phoebe and Paige may I introduce you to Harry Potter and Ron Weasley - friends of Hermione's."

"Hey!" the two women replied, smiling.

"You know Hermione?" Harry asked.

"Well. In a sense. She kinda astralled in on us." Paige said. "About the same time that Piper astralled in on you?" Harry and Ron nodded.

"Harry, Ron. Please sit down." Dumbledore said, waving his wand and making two chairs fly across the room and push themselves under Harry and Ron's legs - making them fall onto them.

"And I thought we could do cool things!" Phoebe hissed to Paige, turning their chairs too.

"Did Miss Hallliwell mention anything to you about where she and Miss Granger were?" Dumbledore asked the two boys.

"Er, she mentioned something about King Arthur times," Harry said, looking at Ron. "And Merlin?"

"Merlin, are you kidding? He's real?" Phoebe demanded. "I always thought he was a Disney character or something."

"What's Disney?" Ron asked, confused.

"Anyway," Harry said, loudly. "Is there anything we can do to get them back?"

"If they went and met Merlin, it would certainly make things _easier_ but otherwise, he's not going to be much help I'm afraid. You can't contact him unless he wants it." Dumbledore said, cheerily.

"Okay." Harry said. "So, what is happening?"

"Well, Paige and I have been talking," Phoebe said. "And I _think_ we have a plan."

(Piper Halliwell was here)

As soon as the carriage had stopped, the door burst open and Hermione fell out, her face all flushed with excitement.

"Piper, it's incredible!" she said, trying to get to her feet but tripping over again and falling flat on her face. Jules reached down and picked her up and Hermione rushed to Lancelot's horse. "The wall! I never knew it was so interesting! Did you know that – are you okay?" she asked, as Piper and Lancelot dismounted, looking at Piper's white face and Lancelot's grey one.

"No, Hermione. I am not." Piper said. "I have just realised I can't give birth to my baby in hospital!"

"Piper, your baby is about six months away, we'll get back by then!" Hermione said, exasperatedly. Piper looked at her.

"I'm going to lie down." She mumbled, stumbling away towards the fort.

"She's a handful, your aunt." Lancelot muttered to Hermione. Hermione nodded.

"You won't meet anyone else like her, that's for sure!" she agreed.

"Hey Lancelot, stop keeping all the women to yourself!" Galahad yelled. Lancelot rolled his eyes.

"After that journey, I think I've been put off women all together!" he remarked.

(Piper Halliwell was here)

Arthur sat down in a spare room, his breast plate on the bed beside him; he had given up his own room for the Bishop – sometimes he wished he wasn't so polite all the time. There was a knock and Arthur turned to see Piper walk in, a bottle and a cloth in her hands.

"Take off your shirt!" she commanded.

"What?" Arthur asked, stunned.

"Take off your shirt!" she repeated. "Vanora asked me to come up and dab some of this stuff on your bruises."

"I don't have any bruises!" Arthur protested.

"Oh really? _Off_!" Piper said, sitting down next to him on the bed. Arthur rolled his eyes and, recognising defeat, tugged his shirt off. He heard Piper click her tongue, disapprovingly. "No bruises, my _arse_." She muttered and dabbed some liquid onto the cloth before pressing it onto a violet bruise on his shoulder blade. "So does Vanora usually do this?"

"Sometimes, healers – whoever." Arthur replied.

"Hmm, well, I tell you now, if you think I'm singing to you then you have another thing – oh damn!" Piper cursed as she spilled some of the liquid on her dress. Arthur chuckled. "What?"

"I've never heard a lady speak like you – you sound like a slave."

"Okay, may I remind you, _I_ am in charge of your wounds so just watch it." Piper warned, but she was grinning.

"As reluctant as I am to bring up the subject again, why have you calmed down about the whole.... you know." He gestured to her stomach.

"Well, someone pointed out that we wouldn't actually _be_ here when it's actually time and I realised that I over-reacted. Maybe."

"Maybe?" Arthur asked, grinning.

"Okay, yeah. I over-reacted." Piper agreed, dabbing on some more stuff.

"When you say, you won't actually be _here_, where will you be?" Arthur asked, twisting around to look at her.

"Home. Hopefully." Piper said.

"Where's that?"

"A very, very long way away." Piper replied, in a clipped sort of voice. Arthur caught her hands.

"Can't you stay?" Arthur looked at her. "The knights would miss you. And Hermione. _I _would miss you." Piper bit her lip.

"I think you'd better finish this." She said eventually, pulling her hand from his and handing him the bottle and cloth before leaving.

**End of chapter. Hope you guys enjoyed, again, I'm sorry for the long wait :/ **


	17. Drama, Drama, Drama!

**-slaps self several times with a wet fish—I am so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so SORRY about the inexcusable lack of update – well, a loss of enthusiasm and laziness would probably explain it but enough's enough! –bangs fist on table—**

**Have realised that in my long, long fanfic writing career (of four/five years), this fic more than most shows a certain degree of development (well, I should hope so anyway). So, it's kinda important to me in that respect and in a moment of soppiness, I dug out my plan and decided to continue! :D**

**Big things happening! :D Exams are over, which means that my school career is finally **_**finito**_** and in August I'm taking a gap year to China before University... so I hope to get my started fanfictions definitely finished by then! :D **

**Also; am thinking of making a couple of videos for this fanfiction. Like maybe a Piper and Hermione or a Piper/Arthur? Would that interest you guys at all? **

Chapter 17: Drama, Drama, Drama!

Hermione didn't see Piper the rest of that evening. She didn't really see the knights either; they'd all disappeared into the fort pretty soon after they'd got back to tend to various wounds and wash up – although, judging by their usual grimy state, Hermione wasn't sure what their understanding of "washing up" was. Assuming she'd see them at dinner, Hermione wasn't too bothered and had spent the rest of the day harassing some construction workers for further details about the wall. When dinner time came however, Vanora intercepted her before she could reach the Round Table room.

"Sorry chook, yer in the tavern with me fer t'night. Arthur and the Knights have important things to talk to the Bishop abou'. Ye can have yer supper with us."

Hermione felt disappointed at not being able to talk to the Knights but smiled and nodded anyway; Vanora was by no means a bad cook and it was early evening so the tavern should be a pretty quiet place to spend time until the Knights came out.

No such luck. Although the Knights weren't in the tavern, quite a few Romans were. A recently arrived patrol, Vanora informed her. All hopes of a quiet evening vanished pretty quickly as Hermione found herself dashing from table to table with trays of beer and refills. Not only that; Piper's absence and the fact that many of the soldiers were completely new to the fort meant that Hermione found herself the focal point of all unwanted attention.

"Ye want me to clout one fer ye?" Vanora offered, glaring fiercely at the Romans as Hermione stacked her tray with yet more beer. "Jus' say the word, an' – FIVE! Tha's Six's ball!" she suddenly bawled, rushing off to deal with her little bastards. Hermione blew a strand of hair out of her face and resignedly carried the beer back to the Romans. Truth was, she was entirely unused to this sort of attention; no one had ever treated her like this at Hogwarts. She couldn't imagine any reason people would either – she was no Cho Chang or Ginny Weasley. She was just bookish, bushy-haired Hermione Granger and until Viktor Krum, no boy had even _looked_ at her before.

"Come on, where's our ale?" A Roman yelled at her. Hermione picked up her pace, near stumbling as she set the tray down.

"Sorry, sorry!" she said, feeling more than a little flustered as she handed out the drinks before making a hasty exit.

"Wait a minute, what's the rush?" Another Roman asked, grabbing her arm in a vice like grip.

"Could you let me go please?" Hermione asked, trying to keep calm and looking desperately for Vanora, who was still reprimanding number Six, with her back to the tavern.

"Aw, what's wrong? Do you not want to spend time with us?" the Roman asked, sounding hurt. "We'll look after you – pretty little girl like you shouldn't be out by herself!"

"Thank you, but I can look after myself!" Hermione told him as fiercely as she could. Evidently she'd need to work on her conviction, as the Roman merely raised an eyebrow and pulled her closer.

"That so?" he asked. "Why don't you prove it?" Hermione's usually brilliant mind went completely blank; all spells, sword-fighting tips – even the basic one-two punch which Fred and George had taught her last Christmas after one Eggnog too many – completely vanished from memory. So, gripping the tray tightly, Hermione did the one last thing she could think of. She smacked him around the head with it. It was a good hit too and if Hermione hadn't been completely mortified then she probably would've been quite proud of herself. The Roman released her, recoiling sharply and the whole Tavern descended into silence as everyone's attention turned to them. The Roman said nothing, merely sat there, dazed for a few moments, before slowly standing to an impressive, if very intimidating, height. Hermione's eyes widened and she tightened her grip on the tray, ready for a second swing.

"Hermione! There you are!" Galahad declared, as he and the rest of the Knights _finally_ entered the tavern.

"We wondered where you'd got to." Gawain added.

"There's not a problem is there?" Lancelot asked the Roman, friendly enough but with a definite warning in his eyes. The Roman didn't reply for a few minutes; apparently weighing his options.

"No, no problem." He agreed, finally.

"Good. In that case," he added, pulling a seat up at the table. "Anyone feeling lucky?" The tension gone; the atmosphere in the tavern resumed one of a more jovial nature as everyone returned to their respective conversations. Galahad put an arm around Hermione and steered her back to the bar.

"Are you alright?" he asked, quietly.

"I'm fine. You know I may not be as tough as Piper or that good with a sword but I _can_ look after myself!" Hermione snapped at him. Galahad looked taken aback.

"Well... yes..."

"And I had that situation completely under control!" she added.

"It definitely looked like it." Galahad agreed. "Hermione, he was going to snap your head off."

"I was handling it!" Hermione insisted; aware that she was being completely unreasonable but not at all willing to back down.

"Well, fine! Next time; don't expect us to help!" he told her; beginning to sound angry, himself.

"Good, you do that!" Hermione agreed, before turning on her heel and stomping out of the tavern.

((_Piper Halliwell was here_))

Piper had not had a pleasant evening. After that pretty awkward situation with Arthur – and she still wasn't entirely sure what had happened – she'd been hit with a sudden feeling of dizziness and had staggered to her bed, where she'd lain for about thirty minutes being hit with alternating spells of dizziness and nausea, while inwardly cursing the fact she was pregnant, before falling asleep. When she'd woken up, it was dark outside and she was more than a little hungry. Since her head now seemed to be behaving, she'd decided she would chance a trip to the tavern for something to eat. She arrived just in time to see Hermione storm off in the opposite direction.

"Where's Hermione going?" she asked Vanora.

"Oh she and Galahad just had a fight." Vanora said, off-handedly.

"A fight?" Piper repeated. "That's not like Hermione."

"Ah I wouldn't worry 'bout it. He dunnae appear to be tha' heartbroken." She said, indicating the Knights' table, where Galahad was locked in what seemed to be a pretty heated drinking game with Gawain. "Although this is the most I've seen him drink an' still be standing before." She added thoughtfully. "Anyway, must dash – can ye keep an eye on Bors for me? He sometimes fergets he's holding a baby and not a Woad's head?"

"Sure." Piper agreed, heading over to where Bors was rocking his baby. "Hey Bors."

"'Ello Piper." Bors greeted her. "Can I ask you summink?"

"Er... sure." Piper agreed.

"Who does he look like? Me or Lancelot?" he asked, holding up the baby, who burped violently.

"Honestly, that kid is one hundred percent Bors." she told him, patting him on the back. Bors grinned, broadly.

"I knew it! I knew he was one of my little bastards!" he declared. "Hey, Vanora! Be a mother to our son!" he yelled. Vanora rolled her eyes but beckoned him over to take the baby from him. Left alone, Piper sat back on a bar stool, hand on her stomach. She watched as Bors cajoled Vanora into singing and the whole tavern – not just the Knights – turned to watch her. She missed her sisters, she really did. She missed Leo too. And Darryl. They were her family; they meant everything to her. And yet somehow, this Hermione kid had wormed her way into Piper's heart and now she was kind of family too. Across the tavern, Piper just made out Arthur appearing on the outskirts of the tavern. And then Piper thought the unthinkable; what if she stayed? The thought immediately made her shudder. Her sisters would be heartbroken – _Leo_ would be heartbroken. She couldn't do that to him. The song stopped and Arthur made to slink away.

"Arthur!"

"Arthur!" The Knights had seen him now and all of them gathered around him, greeting him happily. Piper wavered; unsure whether she should intrude or not – but as the Knights became more and more sullen and Bors' voice grew louder (and his arm movements more erratic), Piper decided that intrusion was necessary.

"I AM A FREE MAN!" Bors bellowed, so loudly that he woke the baby, who began to wail, pitifully, in Vanora's arms. "I will choose my own fate!"

"Yeah, yeah. We're all going to die someday. If it's a death from a Saxon hand that frightens you – stay home." Tristan put in.

"If you're so eager to die, you can die right now!" Galahad yelled, reaching for Tristan and nearly hitting Piper in the process.

"Enough, enough!" Lancelot stepped in, trying to grab Galahad's arm, but he only wrenched it back.

"I'VE GOT SOMETHING TO LIVE FOR!" he roared at Arthur.

"ENOUGH ALREADY!" Piper was a witch. A powerful witch. A powerful witch who'd defeated the Source of All Evil and was currently carrying one of the most powerful witches in existence. And just because Arthur and the Knights didn't know that, did not mean by any accounts that they wouldn't damn well listen to her. "For god's sake, will you all CALM down for one frigging second? That's not a question!" she added to Galahad, who'd opened his mouth again. "What's happened?"

"The Bishop has decided that before we can be given our freedom, we have to go on one final mission." Lancelot said, calmly – albeit sullenly.

"We have to go north of the Wall to rescue a Roman family from the Saxons." Gawain added.

"Even though, the Romans promised us our freedom _today_ and the fact that the north of the Wall is Woad territory _and_ the fact that the Romans are leaving this country to the Saxons anyway." Galahad spat, glaring at Arthur.

"Galahad, I don't know what's gone down between you and Hermione this evening but just because you've been spurned by your crush or whatever, does not mean you get to be so whiny, act like a man for God's sake!" Piper reprimanded him, fiercely. "This sucks, it really does – but it's the Bishop's fault, not Arthur's."

"And why should you care?" Galahad demanded. "Do you have any idea what we've been through? Of how much we've sacrificed for the Romans? You've never had to live like that. You're a Roman yourself." Piper raised her eyebrows and looked around the Knights. While none of them met their gaze, she could tell that at the moment, they kind of agreed with what Galahad was saying.

"Okay," Piper said, deciding on a less aggressive approach. "I understand you're upset. Really, I do. And you're right. I have no idea what it's like to be you. But don't you dare tell me that I haven't made sacrifices, I've made sacrifices you couldn't _dream_ of having to make when it would've been so much easier just to throw it all in. But I do it because it's the right thing to do. It's hard but in the end, it's the only thing you can do – it's why it's called a _sacrifice_. So are you going to whine about it or are you going to get on with it? Besides, the sooner you get back, the sooner you have your freedom, right?" she tailed off, her emotional speech tailing off, looking between the Knights, hopefully.

"The Romans have broken their word." Dagonet boomed eventually. "We have the word of Arthur. That's good enough." Piper breathed out a sigh of relief. "I'll prepare. Bors, you coming?" he asked, heading back towards the Fort.

"Course I'm coming! Can't let you go on your own, you'll all get killed! I'm just saying what you're all thinking!" he yelled, heading after Dagonet. "Vanora's gonna kill me." he muttered to Piper as he passed. Piper patted him on the back, consolingly; he wasn't wrong. The rest of the Knights all slowly dispersed, some more quietly than others - namely Galahad, who took the time to pour out his drink _before _throwing the tankard on the floor and storming off. Eventually it was just Piper, Lancelot and Arthur who were left. Arthur looked at the two at them, first at Lancelot and then his eyes locking with Piper's. Piper felt her cheeks grow hot and, cursing her school girl reaction, she turned away quickly, following the rest of the Knights towards the fort. She may have the gall to face down six angry Knights, but the whole Arthur thing was something Piper was not willing to confront any time soon.

Then something made her stop. There was something unnatural; a shadow, which wasn't moving with the rest of them cast by the flickering light of the wall torches. The more that she focussed on it, the more the shadow stood out, till it was completely defined separately from the rest. Piper flexed her hands, instinctively as the shadow came forward to reveal itself to be a man in long, dark robes. A man who – although dressed appropriately for the time period – looked oddly familiar.

"Hello Piper." Piper's eyes widened. "You're far from home aren't you?"

Death.

**Dun Dun DUUUUN. Cliff hanger! Well, really – the amount of time I made you wait, you deserved a good one ;) Apologies if there are too many mistakes – I was trying to get it up as soon as possible after writing. Hope you enjoyed it! xxx**


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